A mock drill for emergency response to deal with COVID-19 cases will be conducted in hospitals across the country on Tuesday i.e. 27 December, official sources told news agency PTI.
The mock drill will be done to ensure the operational readiness of the Covid-dedicated facilities, with a specific focus on oxygen plants, ventilators, logistics and human resources, they said.
As per sources, Minister Mansukh Mandaviya will also visit a government hospital for the mock drill.
Coronavirus LIVE Blog
An advisory in this regard will be issued by Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya at a virtual meeting with the health ministers of the states and Union territories at 3 pm on Friday, they said.
The states have been asked to strengthen surveillance in accordance with the surveillance strategy already issued (health facility-based sentinel surveillance; pan-respiratory virus surveillance; community-based surveillance, sewage/wastewater surveillance).
They have also been asked to ensure the ramping up of the testing infrastructure, encourage precautionary dose uptake and ensure adherence to Covid Appropriate Behaviour (CAB) in view of the upcoming festive season and the New Year.
They have also been advised to ramp up whole genome sequencing and ensure that a large number of samples are sent for the same.
Meanwhile, Bharat Biotech’s intranasal Covid vaccine has been approved by the Union Health Ministry. As per sources, the needle-free vaccine will be available at private centres and will be added on the Co-WIN platform on Friday evening.
On Thursday, PM Modi chaired a high-level meeting to review the status and preparedness of public health response to COVID-19 and emphasised the need for strengthened surveillance with a focus on genome sequencing and increased testing. This high-level review meeting came against the backdrop of a spike in COVID-19 cases in some countries, according to the Prime Minister’s Office.
PM Modi assessed the COVID-19 situation in the country, the preparedness of health infrastructure and logistics and the status of the vaccination campaign in the country. He also assessed the emergence of new Covid-19 variants and their public health implications.
Over the last two days, Chief Ministers of many states around the country have conducted high-level meetings with Senior Officials regarding the preparedness for Covid-19 in their states. The government also said that around 2 percent of passengers arriving on each international flight will be subject to random coronavirus tests.
(With inputs from PTI)
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