‘Intense testing helped curb cases’

Sustained tracking, tracing and isolation of patients were also key: Health Secy.

August 05, 2020 02:17 am | Updated 02:17 am IST - Theni

Health Secretary J. Radhakrishnan at theMahatma Gandhi Memorial Government Hospital in Tiruchi.  M. Moorthy

Health Secretary J. Radhakrishnan at theMahatma Gandhi Memorial Government Hospital in Tiruchi. M. Moorthy

Intense testing and fever camps have helped bring the number of COVID-19 cases down in recent days in Tamil Nadu, including in Chennai and Madurai districts, Health Secretary J. Radhakrishnan said on Tuesday.

Addressing the media, he said that with no vaccine ready yet, awareness of the disease and adherence to the guidelines issued by the Indian Council of Medical Research might help to check the spread of the noval coronavirus. Sustained tracking, tracing and isolation of patients at an early stage helped to cut down on the case load to a great extent, he said.

In cities like Chennai and Madurai, the fever camps organised at hotspots and the follow-up of cases in locations where there was a history of fever and influenza-like illness helped in early isolation. Promoting awareness was another important factor. He hoped people in rural areas would make a habit of wearing masks.

Answering a question, Mr. Radhakrishnan said it was unfortunate that the body of an aged woman had to be taken for cremation on a pushcart in Theni district recently. The State would get 150 new ambulances soon. Depending on the need, they would be distributed among the districts, he said.

He said the State had 1.18 lakh beds and there was no need for any apprehension about shortage.

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.