From governance to community surveillance: Assam’s 360 degree COVID-19 response

Type Web Page Author WHO URL https://www.who.int/news-room/feature-stories/detail/from-governance-to-community-surveillance-assam-s-360-degree-covid-19-response Date 09/12/2020 Website Type News Language en Abstract The state of Assam in northeastern India is showing how primary health care not only makes health services accessible to communities: it is also an effective way to prepare for and tackle health emergencies. At the heart of Assam’s response to COVID-19 are community health workers, locally known as COVID-19 warriors. They are leading surveillance efforts, enabling early detection, isolation and treatment and keeping the virus from spreading further. Ms Suchitra Goala, 45, is a community health worker (CHW) in Karimganj District in Assam, a state in northeastern India. She is what is known locally as a ‘COVID-19 warrior’. Since the pandemic took hold in March 2020, she has been supporting her local community in the COVID-19 emergency response. In India, CHWs are called accredited social health activist (ASHA), and they serve as the link between communities and health care facilities. “Being a community health worker and a COVID-19 warrior, I am so proud that I have been contributing in my best possible way to support my fellow villagers during the COVID-19 pandemic. It is so heartening to share that I could ensure the home quarantine of 45 people, who returned to my village from other states after the lockdown relaxed. I participated in the Assam Community Surveillance Programme when I visited house-to-house in my area as a part of active community surveillance,” Suchitra said. Testing, tracing and treatment through the increasing network of primary health care (PHC) centres are crucial to the national response to COVID-19. WHO, through the UHC Partnership, was already working closely with Assam State health authorities to strengthen PHC centres across the state when COVID-19 struck. The PHC network has provided a solid base, not only to make progress towards universal health coverage (UHC), but also to tackle the challenges that COVID-19 brings to communities. Website Title World Health Organisation (WHO) Short Title From governance to community surveillance