Guidelines For COVID Centres In Gated Housing Societies Issued

The Union Health and Family Welfare Ministry have issued guidelines for gated residential complexes that are considering setting up small Coronavirus Care centres run by the Residents Welfare Association, housing societies, and NGOs using their own resources. These issued guidelines are based on eligibility and handling of different categories of cases. 

According to Ministry this step will be more agreeable to the residents and will help diminish the burden on existing facilities for managing pre-symptomatic, asymptomatic, and very mild cases of Covid-19 residing in that particular society. 

The guidelines followed by Gated Societies for COVID Care Center –

• These facilities are not valid for elderly patients, pregnant women, children age below 10 years, patients suffering from diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, kidney disease, chronic respiratory disease, cancer, and other immune-compromised states, as these people shall be admitted to a proper Coronavirus care facility. 
• The COVID Care facility is bound to follow strict infection prevention and control practices. According to the guidelines, any confirmed or suspected cases will be kept in separate areas and no mixing of cases will be allowed in which separate toilet systems will be there respectively.  
• The facility will be linked to the IDSP team where all the important numbers of the RWA/residential society/NGO, doctor, caregiver, and ambulance service provider will be displayed noticeably.  
• The facility should have a separate entry and exit doors in which compulsory hand sanitization facility should be there in the entry point along with the thermal screening provision for the caregivers. The distance between each bed should be a minimum of one meter from each other. 
• Within the premises of residential complex or in empty flats, the makeshift facility should be set up in a community hall. These should be an isolated location from the rest of the occupied building. 
• Natural ventilation rooms should be provided where proper exhaust fans should be there to vent out air from the facility.
• Daily medical examination of the admitted patients should be checked up by the doctor residing within the gated complex or NGO along with the caregiver who will provide proper care to the patients. These doctors and caretakers before joining should take mandatory training on the iGot platform (https://diksha.gov.in/igot/) on COVID management and infection, prevention, and control practices. 
• The security system should be required with proper video camera surveillance in case any of the admitted patients do not try to leave the facility premises. 
•  If a suspect case admitted to COVID Care Facility tests negative, the patient will be assessed by the treating doctor and will either be discharged (on medication, if applicable) or referred to a non-COVID facility as per requirement.

Article Written By Dikhya Mohanty 

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