By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, May 26: Meghalaya is yet to report any confirmed case of Covid, even as several cases are being reported from various states.
However, in view of the increasing Covid cases in the country, the Health & Family Welfare Department on Monday convened a review meeting with the Medical Expert Committee (MEC) to assess the state’s preparedness.
The meeting chaired by Principal Secretary and Development Commissioner of Health & Family Welfare Department, Sampath Kumar included senior health experts and representatives from key government and private institutions across the state.
The need for heightened surveillance through increased testing and preparedness was discussed and all government and private health facilities were directed to assess and strengthen their Covid response readiness, including oxygen availability, critical care infrastructure, and protocols for monitoring and managing Severe Acute Respiratory Infection (SARI), Influenza-like-Illness (ILI) and fever cases.
Instructions have also been issued to revisit inventories of essential drugs and ensure functionality of testing centres across districts.
Kumar called for a proactive and preventive approach, emphasising the importance of monitoring ILI/SARI/fever trends, especially in high-footfall areas like markets and public institutions.
Health institutions have also been asked to review and update their internal SoPs and revisit effective protocols from past Covid waves.
Amid an uptick in Covid cases in some parts of the country, Director General of the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) Dr Rajiv Behl Monday said the severity of infections as of now is generally mild and there was no cause for worry. He said the new variants are not severe and are Omicron sub-variants.