East Jaintia Hills District Admin issues Protocols for RAT Testing in home deaths

Syllad | The Rising MeghalayaJune 25, 2021

The Deputy Commissioner, East Jaintia Hills District in a press release issued here informs the general public that in pursuance to the Government Notification, any person who is declared dead in a place other than Medical Institution, such as the residence of the deceased or other places, may be tested through Rapid Antigen Test (RAT) to ascertain the cause of the death and confirm COVID 19 infection.

The District Surveillance Team or the Medical Officer of the closest health facility may decide the course of action relating to the testing of the dead body. If the dead body is found to be COVID Positive, then the dead body management is also to be done at the site by the concerned health authority as per the requisite protocols.

According to the Notification, the criteria’s that should be considered for testing a deceased person for COVID-19 includes Symptoms such as fever, cough, breathlessness, loss of appetite, general weakness and diarrhea. Also, if a deceased had recently been in contact with a positive COVID-19 person and had been classified as a high risk contact, if any of the family members is/was positive for COVID-19 and if there is clustering or high transmission of the infection in the locality where the decease resided or the area falls under Containment Zone.

The Notification also stated that the Medical Officer shall advise the family members to get tested under such circumstances and counsel them on the necessity to do so. The collection of samples may be done at the residence of the deceased/wherever the body has been kept at the nearest health facility as per the local situation/ convenience. This may be adopted as a part of the Protocols for dead body management in the context of home deaths irrespective of the cause of the death.