Kerala adopts South Korean method of COVID-19 testing by setting up kiosks, to enable mass sample collection and do away with personal protective equipment. By Tanvi Jain
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Kerala’s first COVID-19 treatment centre – The Government Medical College Hospital (MCH) in Ernakulam – has now taken a step further in the fight against the pandemic by setting up South Korean style kiosks to collect samples for the test. As of now, two Walk-in Sample Kiosks (WISK) have been installed at the medical institute.
The WISK is a glass cabin, which has been built in such a way that its interiors where the doctors stand, are always sterile, and from their only, they can collect the throat swabs of people standing outside the kiosk. It spares doctors from wearing personal protective equipment (PPE).
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Magnetic doors, exhaust fan, and ultraviolet light are some of the protective features that the kiosk comprises of. Moreover, it also has fit-in gloves and a chair in front of it, both of which are decontaminated after each sample collection. The kiosks are a great way to avoid community spread and facilitate more tests.
As per officials the WISK whose complete production cost ranges somewhere around INR 40,000, is much more cost effective than single-usable personal protection kit, which is worth up to INR 1,000. Not only is it cheaper, but also facilitates mass sample collection.
Authorities are also reportedly planning to install similar kiosks at other collection centres such as the Muvattupuzha general hospital, Aluva district hospital, and Karuvelipady government hospital. Reports further suggest that two more centres — Tripunithura taluk hospital and Paravur taluk hospital — might also get the kiosk soon.
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Moreover, Telangana has deployed a COVID-19 Monitoring System App developed by healthcare technology startup Vera Smart Healthcare. As per Vera, the app helps undertake live surveillance, track, and monitor quarantined people and provide real-time analytics. As many as six kiosks were first installed in South Korea, which not only enabled mass testing of coronavirus, but also helped curb the rising cases.
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