Karnataka govt goes door-to-door for COVID-19 risk assessment, tracks vulnerable people

In an attempt to take utmost precautions amid the COVID-19 crisis, the Karnataka Government has gone door to door to track the high-risk individuals who could be at risk of catching the virus.

The survey has revealed that about 44 percent of the people across the state fall under the high-risk category owing to the presence of elderly citizens or pregnant ladies or lactating women in the house. About 51.53 lakh households have senior citizens and 4.38 lakh households have pregnant, lactating women who could be more prone or at risk of contracting the virus due to sensitive health condition or low immunity.

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The survey being conducted by the Karnataka government as part of its COVID-19 containment plan to compile a health register of citizens, with a specific focus on identifying those above the age of 60 with underlying health problems.

About 60,000 officials including teachers, government staff and booth level officers have gone door to door to collect health-related information of the households across the state. The officials asked basic questions to seek information on pregnant/lactating women, any elderly over 60 years of age or with health issues such as blood pressure or diabetes, persons with breathlessness, fever or cough and cold, and the information of the head of the household.

A household with a 'Yes' to any of the above questions would be marked in the vulnerable category. The data is would then go into the state’s health watch mobile app and web application.

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State-wide survey for 'World-Class Health Care'

Medical Education Minister Dr. K Sudhakar on Friday said that the state government, with the determination to provide enhanced healthcare facilities, is set to launch a project to maintain the health database of all its citizens. The unique "State Health Register" will be a robust and standardised health repository of people.

“COVID-19 experience has demonstrated the necessity of having robust, real-time public health data and, therefore, there is a need to maintain a repository of health data of each and every citizen,” Sudhakar said.

The project will be implemented first in Chikkaballapur district on an experimental basis. "Our government is committed to providing world-class healthcare to all citizens," the Medical Education Minister said.

According to Sudhakar, Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa has assured all support for the project and a detailed discussion will be undertaken in the next cabinet meeting. The minister also expressed his commitment to ensuring world-class healthcare facilities to all citizens of the state.

The Karnataka government will conduct a survey of all 6.5 crore people in the state, through a team of Primary Health Centre officials, revenue officials, education department staff, and ASHA karyakartas. Officials will visit each household and collect health data of all the members of the family. The move will also help inefficient resource allocation, management, and better implementation of various citizen-centric schemes in the state, the Minister added.

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