Coronavirus pandemic: Here's what ‘Contain’ and 'Delay' phase of action plan mean

As the United Kingdom is set to enter the ‘Delay’ phase from ‘Contain’ phase in the wake of coronavirus threat, some of the actions taken under the previous phase will carry over to the next one. The British government has chalked out the overall plan to fight the deadly disease into four different phases: contain, delay, research, and mitigate.

Under the Contain phase, UK public health agencies and authorities established plans and procedures to detect and isolate the first cases of COVID-19. The government issued guidelines to follow during the early phase which included regularly washing hands and using hand sanitiser. The main guidelines also advised everyone to clean and disinfect regularly touched objects and surfaces.

Contain: Detect and isolate

Britain’s public health agencies have been using tried and tested procedures of rapid tracing, monitoring and isolation of close contacts. It also maintained strategic stockpiles of the “most important” medicines and protective equipment for healthcare staff who may come in contact with infected patients.

While several actions of Contain phase will continue during the Delay phase, the next phase could mean temporary closure of schools and colleges and cancellation of public gatherings. Though the Delay phase does not call for any major lockdown, the cancellation of sporting and cultural events could have a considerable impact on the country’s stagnant economy.

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Delay: Slowing down the spread

The Delay phase is aimed at slowing down the spread of the virus, lowering the peak impact and pushing it towards the summer season when the National Health Service (NHS) will be under less pressure. As per the government’s actions plan, the Delay phase also helps buy time for the development and testing of vaccines since there is currently no vaccine available for the coronavirus pandemic.

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Government experts are considering other effective actions under the Delay phase which will have social costs of implementing them. The “social cost” suggests that the government could urge the employees to work from home and avoid social gatherings. Britain has reported 456 confirmed cases of coronavirus with eight fatalities due to the deadly virus.

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