Policy balance
The recent appointment of Sanjay Malhotra as Governor of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), replacing Shaktikanta Das, signals a pivotal shift in India’s monetary policy dynamics.
With significant decline in number of Covid-19 cases in Bengal the state health department has issued new guidelines for Novel coronavirus confirmatory tests. According to the guidelines, no Covid-19 test is required for patients rushing to hospitals without any symptoms.
Patients seeking treatment in hospitals and nursing homes will have to undergo COVID confirmatory tests only if they show symptoms of the deadly virus. The state expert committee comprising specialist doctors associated with different government and private hospitals has prepared the guidelines, stated in a circular issued by the health department.
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COVID test is needed if the patient is symptomatic for coronavirus. Pre-procedure screening is required only for making arrangements involving oral/nasal cavity or pharynx surgeries where the concerned surgeon comes close in contact with the patient. No RT-PCR or RAT test is needed for routine hospital admissions (day care or regular indoor admissions) for any major or minor surgery or interventional/non-interventional procedure unless the patient is symptomatic.
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No patient should be referred to another hospital for inadequate infrastructure facilities for Covid-19 tests. The committee has also recommended several directives for personal protective equipment (PPE) kits required for doctors and other medical staff. N95 masks, gloves, face shields, and plastic aprons along with hand hygiene are sufficient for personal protection for surgical procedures on patients without any Covid-19 symptoms. There is no need for PPEkits for doctors and medical staff in such surgical cases, the directive stated.
There has been a steady decline in the number of COVID cases across the state in the last few days. The COVID positivity rate has also come down to .80 per cent on an average. On Thursday, no COVID death was also reported in the state, first time since February 28 in 2021 when not a single death was recorded.
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