Covid survey akin to cohort study: IMA

PANAJI: Indian Medical Association (IMA) – Goa, has extended full support to the government’s initiative to conduct the house to house survey in a bid to detect the community spread of Covid-19, scheduled to begin Monday.
“We are committed to fighting the Covid-19 menace as a strong, united force. We support chief minister Pramod Sawant’s endeavour in this “fight to win” against Covid 19,” said IMA-Goa president Dr S Samuel Arawattigi, in a statement.
Apart from detecting flu symptoms, the survey will help make available data on the prevalence of diabetes, hypertension, kidney disease and respiratory diseases, which will be like a cohort study of the entire population, the statement said.
The data will be a great asset to the health department for future reference. It will also be useful to frame policies to control non-communicable diseases in the state, the association said.
IMA -Goa said the government should ensure that proper protective gear like masks and gloves are provided to all the field staff involved in the door-to-door survey. “We hope staff will take care and follow social distancing norms while conducting the survey,” it said.