Ramp up testing drive, save lives
- The People's Chronicle Editorial :: August 12, 2021 -

FLUCTUATIONS in the test positivity rate for the last many weeks indicate that the health department authorities have not been able to either maintain consistency in testing drives or accelerate tracing of the possible vectors.

As the state now has impressive numbers of oxygen plants including one of the largest in the northeast region with the inauguration of the liquid medical oxygen on Tuesday, the focus should be now on saving lives through efficient execution of the experts' guidelines for tracing as many virus carriers as possible.

With the government prioritising availability of beds for Covid-19 patients in both general hospitals and community home isolation centres along with augmenting the oxygen supply mechanism and recruiting healthcare personnel with an aim to curb the spread of the pandemic, it is imperative for the health department to accelerate the testing drives to free the state from the vice-like grip of the contagious disease.

The healthcare personnel might be getting weary after over 15 months of continuous efforts to contain the pandemic but the prevailing situation entails relentless compliance with the trace, test and treat protocols to ensure timely detection and isolation of the vectors to curb further spread of the virus and consequently save precious lives.

The second wave of the pandemic infecting 76,024 people and claiming the lives of 1290 patients as of Tuesday underscore how destructive the Delta variant of the virus has been in the state, which had been evidently over-emphasising on enforcing containment measures and improving the rate of administering vaccine doses while undermining the importance of tracing and treating the infected people.

One thing everybody knows by now is that every single person can help the government in controlling the pandemic.

From wearing a mask to maintaining hand and respiratory hygiene to keeping physical distance and avoiding large gatherings, majority of the people have been following proven public health practices that not only reduce the chance of getting infected but also prevent the spread of Covid-19 to friends and loved ones.

However, the wildfire like spread of the pandemic triggered by the Delta variant is making it difficult for substantial number of people, who have to toil for two square meals a day, to religiously adhere to Covid appropriate behaviour.

Importance of accelerating the testing drive in the fight against the pandemic has been proven when on Tuesday the state recorded seven deaths and 633 new positive cases out of 5118 samples tested, and registered positivity rate of 12.37 per cent, which was the lowest since July 1 when 11.39 per cent positivity rate was recorded.

Under all circumstances, the momentum of examining as many samples as possible should be maintained.

It has been established that testing of people for Covid-19, including those who have no symptoms, who show symptoms of infection such as trouble breathing, fever, sore throat or loss of the sense of smell and taste, and who may have been exposed to the virus will help prevent the spread of pandemic by identifying people who are in need of care in a timely fashion.

Thus, the health department will have to prioritise measures to prevent the spread of infection, no matter how tough the task is.