BMC’S main concern: How do we urge citizens to be at home

We have been trying so hard to sensitise people about the need to stay at home, but people are going to markets and stations. DR PADMAJA KESKAR, executive health officer, BMC

MUMBAI: With the city reporting its highest daily spurt of Covid-19 cases at eight new cases on Saturday, Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s (BMC) health officials are wondering how to keep the people at home.

Saturday was the first day of complete shutdown in Mumbai in the wake of coronavirus outbreak. All non-essential services were ordered to be shut in four districts — Mumbai, Pune, Pimpri-chinchwad and Nagpur — which have recorded the highest number of cases. The decision was taken to decrease crowds on roads to prevent further possible transmission. However, despite the shutdown, hundreds of Mumbaiites flocked at grocery stores to stock up, thus exposing themselves to possible infection.

Health officials said it is not the lack of isolation beds or ventilators which are the main hurdles in the fight to contain the outbreak, but citizens ignoring the state’s suggestion to socially distance themselves is. “We’ve been trying so hard to sensitise people about the need to stay at home, but people are going to markets and stations to board trains for their hometowns. People are the main hurdle we are facing to bring the outbreak under control,” said Dr Padmaja Keskar, executive health officer, BMC.

Health officials have now turned to the old process of making announcements on roads. All 24 wards have been provided with two vehicles to sensitise people about the need to stay at home by making announcements in every lane of the city. “We’ve formed a team of health officials in each ward who are looking at the bandobast and checking on the homequarantined patients,” she said.

HOSPITALS START ‘FEVER AND COLD OPD’

All civic-run hospitals including Sir JJ Hospital have started fever and cold out-patient departments (OPDS) to ensure people do not get exposed to Covid-19 during their visit to general OPDS. “Patients infected with Sars-cov-2 have symptoms similar to flu. So, there are possibilities of an infected person, who is unaware of his/ her condition, infecting several others during their visit to OPD for check-ups. Hence, we have created this new OPD,” said Dr Hemant Deshmukh, dean of King Edward Memorable (KEM) Hospital.