J&K conducts mock drill to review preparedness

Health institutions across Jammu and Kashmir conducted mock drills on Tuesday to check their preparedness to deal with any situation due to coronavirus.

Health and Medical Education Secretary Bhupinder Kumar, who monitored the exercise, said it is aimed to assess the readiness of key health facilities and their logistical requirement.

The drills were conducted as part of a nationwide exercise to check the readiness of health facilities to deal with any surge in cases.

The secretary expressed satisfaction over the successful completion of mock drills.
The exercise included checking of oxygen generation plants installed at different locations, availability of machinery, equipment, drugs, diagnostics and other covid logistics, he said.

All the healthcare institutions were found to be in the state of preparedness to tackle any upsurge of cases in Jammu and Kashmir, Kumar said.

Moreover, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya saying the country has to remain alert and prepared as cases are rising in the world.

Mandaviya oversaw the exercise at the Centre-run Safdarjung Hospital here, while health ministers took stock in their respective states and gave information on available beds, oxygen support and other equipment, medicines, vaccines, etc.

The Centre had asked states and union territories to conduct the drill as part of precautionary measures following an increase in infection in China and other countries.

“Covid cases are rising all over the world and India might witness a spike in cases too. Hence it is important that the entire Covid infrastructure in terms of equipment, processes and human resources are in a state of operational readiness,” he said, adding government and private hospitals were making arrangements to ensure the people do not face any difficulty.

Clinical readiness at hospitals is crucial, Mandaviya said.

He cautioned against complacency and urged everyone to follow Covid-appropriate behaviour. He also asked people to refrain from sharing unverified information and ensure a high-level of preparedness.
“To prevent an outbreak, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has directed us to stay alert and remain prepared,” he said.

India recorded a single-day rise of 157 new COVID-19 cases, while the count of active cases of the disease has marginally decreased to 3,421, according to Union Health Ministry data updated on Tuesday.