SHILLONG, May 30: The COVID war room set up by the East Khasi Hills district administration to ensure quick and timely response to requirements related to the pandemic has been running at full steam.
The war room is divided into seven zones in Shillong Urban Agglomeration and nine Community and Rural Development blocks in the district. Each zone is headed by the respective Incident Commander.
Others attached to the war room include the medical officer, executive magistrates, nodal officer of dead body management besides staff, who have clear mandated responsibilities.
The war room has been set up also to monitor the COVID situation real time.
Incident Commander of Zone VI, Ronnie Wahlang said the main function of the war room is primarily to reach out to the citizens, especially the vulnerable ones who are not aware of the COVID symptoms.
According to him, if there are distress calls, the doctors try to assess the cases and advise if the patients are required to be shifted to a Corona Care Centre or hospital. “Till date, we have done four transfers and received around 20 calls pertaining to COVID appropriate behaviour. Questions were also asked about passes to people who might require them on urgent basis,” Wahlang said.
Incident Commander of Zone III, Martina Lyttan said the war room response has to be very quick, efficient and organised.
“The cases have kept increasing and if everyone calls 108, then there will be chaos and delay in the response which could lead to unfortunate circumstances,” Lyttan said.
According to her, the concept of war room is basically the decentralisation of COVID management at the zonal level.
The Incident Commander of Zone II, Hepzibah Mabel L Kynta said they are assisting the public in receiving information on transportation related to COVID, Corona Care Centres, hospitals, ambulance inquiries and reporting cases and symptoms and emergent essential requirements through the war room.
She said they are working in close coordination with the transport cell station at Polo ground to help shift COVID patients to Corona Care Centres or hospitals. She also said that the calls made by people are transferred to doctors.
The Medical Officer of Zone III, E Pradhan said they try to reach out to patients and others developing the symptoms.
“We are stationed 24×7 to attend to people who require assistance. We have managed to help shift patients either to the Corona Care Centres or hospitals,” Dr Pradhan said.
