Kerala government on Sunday issues fresh guidelines to improve patient care during the COVID-19 pandemic and decided to convert fever clinic into COVID clinic in all hospitals and as per COVID treatment protocol.
As per the Kerala government's notification, all government hospitals are directed to focus on COVID cases management and provide non-Covid emergency services during the surge time till May 31. The government said appropriate instructions in this regard will be given subsequently.
"Convert Fever Clinic into COVID clinic in all hospitals and as per the COVID treatment protocol and referral protocol take actions. COVID OP to provide necessary consultation, lab services and medicines for COVID positive patients as per the protocol. At Taluka Hospitals arrange Oxygen beds and wherever possible arrange at least 5 beds with Bipap ventilators to provide Oxygen support to the referred patients from the field," the notification said.
The Kerala government also instructed to attach Covid second-line treatment centre (CSLTC) to each Taluka hospital.
According to the government's notification, primary health centres (PHC) and family health centres (FHCs) and all other hospitals are directed to ensure stock of steroids and oral anticoagulants. "Refer to the Home Care management advisory and take follow up actions accordingly," it said.
The government said if a bedridden patient is positive, an oxygen concentrator may be arranged at their home and provide homecare as per the advisory. "Provide other treatment support through palliative volunteers/ Rapid Response Teams (RRT) at Panchayat," it said.
"Inform the Telemedicine units and Counsellors of Department of Mental Health (DMH) program and ensure calls to the patients at home isolation to assess their health status regularly. Motivate and enforce private hospitals to increase Covid oxygen and ICU beds to a minimum 50 per cent capacity. Private Hospitals also to start COVID OP with necessary investigation and treatment," the notification read.
Kerala reported 35,801 new COVID-19 cases, 29,318 recoveries and 68 deaths on Sunday. There are 4,23,514 active cases in the state currently while the death toll has reached 5,814.
( With inputs from ANI )
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