5,523 clinicians, which includes 1,132 specialists, to conduct virtual triage of probable cases based on their symptoms and diagnostic conditions. Covid-19 patients who choose home isolation would be guided by these doctors, who would advise them on drugs and therapy options. They would also provide advice on testing and other procedures for suspected cases.
If the health of the home-isolated patients get worse, doctors would send them to authorized hospitals or Covid care centers. The health department provided these clinicians with Covid-19 protocol training and webinars, as well as a customized application.
On inbound calls, call center executives were responsible for giving information about nearby testing centers, test results, and the availability of beds in hospitals and Covid care centers, as well as arranging for Covid-19 testing and admissions in hospital or care centers. To fulfil all these operations, the district call centers have been fully operationalized with dedicated phone lines and enough employees to work 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
The center addressed an average of 15,000 calls per day during the peak time of the pandemic outbreak in May. The regular calls have now reduced to less than 1,000 per day, owing to the lower case numbers. The officials said that the state 104 contact center employs roughly 180 workers who work in three shifts. The center has also partnered with ambulances to transport patients to hospitals, in addition to virtual consultations by doctors. The center also offers the service of contact tracing. The health department recently announced that the 104 call center service would be expanded to all metropolitan local bodies and mandals.
