The WHO, in an effort to support India, is procuring laboratory supplies, including 1.2 million reagents for testing, mobile field hospitals with capacity of 20-30 beds, which could be set up in the most affected areas;
According to the press release, the bed capacity at these field hospitals can be increased to a maximum of 50 if needed, without impacting infection prevention and control protocols, and water and sanitation.
Additionally, the health body is also chartering flights to bring in 4,000 oxygen concentrators to help meet the increased demands, and over 2,600 WHO technical staff, working on various programmes such as polio, TB and NTD, have been repurposed to support pandemic response in India.
Saying that the WHO will continue to work with health authorities at all levels, it will address the fear among the communities which triggers hoarding of medical supplies and the rush to hospitals.
She added that with mounting cases, it is important to triage people well to optimise…
