Covid19: Assam issues 7-day discharge protocol for home isolation patients
Guwahati: The Assam government has stated that a COVID-19 patient in home isolation will be considered discharged after seven days without having undergone a second test if the person has not had a fever for three days in a row, as per the Centre’s regulation
The Assam Health and Family Welfare Department issued a Standard Operating Protocol (SOP) for home isolation on Saturday, claiming that the country and the state are experiencing a third wave of the pandemic, potentially due to the latest identified coronavirus strain, Omicron.
“Patients under home isolation will stand discharged and end isolation after at least 7 days have passed from testing positive subject to the conditions that there has been no fever for three successive days and they shall continue wearing masks,” it added.
The patients will, however, continue to be under home quarantine for seven more days, the SOP stated.
“There is no need for re-testing after the home isolation period is over. Asymptomatic contacts of infected individuals need not undergo COVID test but should monitor his or her health condition in home quarantine,” the document said.
According to the guidelines, the majority of new cases are asymptomatic or have very mild symptoms, and these people normally recover with minimum treatments and can be maintained at home with careful medical supervision and monitoring.
“The telemedicine and home-based medical care system has been strengthened across the state considering the possibility of large numbers of COVID-positive cases in the state,” it added.
According to the SOP, all confirmed cases that do not show any symptoms and have an oxygen saturation of more than 93 percent at room air are considered asymptomatic.
“Such cases should have requisite facility at their residence for self-isolation. A caregiver should be available to provide assistance 24×7,” it added.
The caregiver should ideally be someone who has completed his COVID-19 vaccination schedule with both doses, the SOP added.
In a press conference on Friday, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma claimed that his government is encouraging people to undergo home isolation if their health is not serious.
Addressing the media, Sarma stated that the state would give them with a package containing all of their medications for free, and that doctors would provide tele-counselling services on a regular basis.