With Collectors holding detailed discussions with senior health officials on Sunday, COVID-19 war rooms in Vellore, Tiruvannamalai, Ranipet and Tirupattur are on high alert to tackle emergencies that can arise due to the Omicron variant of Coronavirus.
Vellore Collector P. Kumaravel Pandian inspected the war room, set up in the Vellore City Corporation building, on Sunday and instructed health officials on preparedness measures that need to be taken. At present, 50 international fliers have landed in Vellore from the Chennai airport. Despite having a negative test result on the infection, health officials were instructed by the Collector to home quarantine the international fliers, mostly from Chennai, for seven days.
The war room with a team of medical staff will monitor these travellers round-the-clock. "Once these travellers land at the Chennai airport, we keep a tab on them for at least a week," P. Ashok Kumar, Commissioner of Vellore City Corporation, said.
At present, the district administration has set up a 50-bed isolation ward for the Omicron-infected patients at the Vellore Government Medical College Hospital. Likewise, Tiruvannamalai Collector B. Murugesh has instructed to set up a 125-bed facility, including 25 beds in the ICU, at the Tiruvannamalai Government Medical College Hospital for the Omicron-infected patients. Ranipet and Tirupattur officials are initiating steps to set up such a separate isolation ward. "We will have a meeting with officials and set up such an isolation ward in the coming days," Amar Kushwaha, Tirupattur Collector, said. Officials said the treatment area should have a separate entry and exit.
The hospitals were also instructed to keep ready all medicines, IV fluids, and oxygen points, cylinders and concentrators. As of now, the district administration has not issued any instruction to cut down on non-emergency and out-patient department services. Treatment of non-COVID cases has not yet been disturbed. However, the hospitals were instructed to be on alert.