Tamil Nadu govt to open 2,000 additional one-doctor clinics to treat non-COVID patients

The Tamil Nadu government plans to set up around 2,000 mini clinics across the state for treating people with issues like ordinary fever amid the COVD-19 pandemic, Chief Minister K Palaniswami said on Tuesday.

Aggressive testing and treatment strategy have helped in reducing the spread of the virus he said, addressing top government officials at a review meeting on medical infrastructure. The proposed mini clinics will be established in areas where there are no Primary Health Centres, due to which, people are unable to get treatment for fever and other issues owing to the worries of Covid-19 spread, he said.  

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These mini clinics will consist of a doctor, nurse and an assistant, besides the required medical equipment and medicines. Medicines will be provided to patients for easily treatable diseases such as fever, he said.

CM Palaniswami said the spread of Coronavirus was gradually slowing down due to aggressive government intervention and testing around 85,000 samples a day. After testing, the health department ensures due medical care to the affected patients, he added.

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Chennai witnesses dip in COVID cases

The Chief Minister pointed out that Chennai, which has the highest number of cases in the state, has been reporting less than 1,000 daily infections over the past few days. He attributed the dip in positive cases in the capital city to the door-to-door survey that was also being held across the state.

As of Tuesday, Tamil Nadu’s overall Covid-19 count stood at 4,74,940, with 4,16,715 discharges and 8,012 fatalities. Chennai tops the list of infections with a total of 1,43,602 cases reported to date.

As the government has allowed a series of relaxations, officials should maintain extra vigil since the e-pass system for inter-district travel has now been scrapped, allowing free movement of people, CM K Palaniswami said. He also stated that violation of health protocols like wearing masks will now attract a fine.

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