There are plans to increase the number of camps from 26 to 40 to draw samples from residents for COVID-19 testing in containment zones in Chennai on Wednesday, said Health Minister C. Vijayabaskar.
The Minister, shortly after inspecting COVID-19 facilities readied at the Communicable Diseases Hospital (CDH) in Tondiarpet on Tuesday, said, “The Chief Minister has instructed us to test more. Accordingly, the Health Department, along with the Chennai Corporation, has set up 26 camps in the city. The Corporation’s doctors and paramedical staff are drawing samples from residents at these camps, as per protocol, with adequate protective gear.”
With the ongoing containment plan, family members of persons who have tested positive and all their contacts have been identified with help from the police and the Revenue Department, he said. “We are encouraging them to come to the camps and get tested. The results will be available the next day. The works is being expedited,” he said.
“As the number of camps increases, we will be able to carry out the containment plan effectively and lift samples from everybody,” he said.
Facilities scaled up
At the CDH in Tondiarpet, individual rooms have been readied, with a total of 200 beds, for treating COVID-19 patients. They will be utilised if the need arises. The hospital has scaled up its facilities to accommodate 200 patients, the Minister said.
“The number of beds has been increased at CDH as a precautionary measure,” he said. Overall, adequate isolation facilities for COVID-19 are being set up across the State, he added.