GUWAHATI, May 13: With daily COVID-19 cases in Meghalaya pushing the 600 mark, the Meghalaya Health department is aiming to minimise hospitalisation cases and vaccination hesitancy among the state’s populace.
As it is, the department is going aggressive on a three-pronged strategy of containment, vaccination and early diagnosis/treatment protocol.
Speaking exclusively to The Shillong Times on Thursday, Principal Secretary of Health department, Sampath Kumar said that despite the cases peaking, “prevention is, by and large, the strategy” we are adhering to, requiring containment measures such as physical distancing double masking and family containment measures, et al.
“Essentially, we are trying to ensure that the COVID positive patients do not land up in hospitals. But the cause of concern as of now is that a higher number of cases require hospitalisation. Precisely, about 12 to 16% of infected persons require hospitalisation and this strain (in the second wave) has a particular trend. We have therefore ramped up the oxygen bed facilities in the state,” Kumar said.
Three pressure swing adsorption plants will also be set up in the state as part of Japan and United Nations Development Programme India partnership. “Besides, two liquid oxygen storage plants are also coming up in the state,” he added.
The state reported 591 cases from Wednesday to Thursday evening, with 318 of them reported from East Khasi Hills itself. However, 228 people have recovered in the past 24 hours even as 18 deaths were reported in the state.
The surge in Meghalaya has been witnessed since April and the rate of infection during the second wave has been very high as well. “This wave has seen 1000 cases in less than a month, as compared to four to five months to reach that figure last year,” he said.
“We are also looking to reduce vaccination hesitancy among the population…We had conducted a study to find out the underlying reasons for vaccine hesitancy and subsequently worked to remove the psychological barriers. Things have improved since and today we have opened the slots for the 18-plus category. As many as 42,000 slots were booked in five minutes,” Kumar said.
“As far as injection wastage, we have put a protocol where at least 10 members should come so that the vials which contain 10 doses each are not wasted,” he said.
Kumar said that early diagnosis and early treatment protocol put in place a week ago aims to educate people on recognising the symptoms, which might lead to respiratory distress. “Everyone should behave as if they are asymptomatic carriers and practice self isolation,” he said. Meghalaya, he said sufficient necessary injections and drugs, having procured stocks from outside.
Asked why the deaths are occurring amongst the younger group this time, Kumar said that obesity apart from a general health condition is the cause, besides the fact that a “large number of young people are moving around more…they are mobile.”
Medical experts say that the strain is lighter, air borne and spreads faster, affecting young and old alike, in contrast to the strain last year.
The state has also seen people who are sick from other ailments but fear or are hesitant to go to hospitals amid the COVID surge.
Asked what the state government was doing to allay the fears, he said that the state has put in place active surveillance systems whereby community COVID management teams reach out to people. “Then again, we even have traditional headmen involved in spreading awareness on the importance of early diagnosis and treatment upon detection of symptoms,” Kumar said.
“Besides, a large number of people are in home quarantine/home isolation, for which we have activated 20 mobile medical units in Shillong to reach out and help them …so if there is any issue, then there is an immediate referral,” he added.
