Med college adopts safe method to collect swab

TNN | Apr 7, 2020, 04.10 AM IST

Trichy: Taking cue from foreign countries, Pudukottai government medical college has come up with a safe method for taking a nasopharyngeal swab from suspected COVID-19 positive patients by making use of a separate cabin.

The nasopharyngeal swab is collected from the surface of the inner nose of the patient by inserting a flexible swab. Doctors wear complete protective apron including goggle and helmet to prevent themselves from getting infected. Doctors need to change their protective gears every time nasopharyngeal swab is collected from a patient. This may lead to a shortage of protective gears as it happened in a few western countries. While protective gear costs around Rs 2,000 to 3,000 thereby making it an expensive affair, this process reduces the consumption of personal protective equipment by doctors, said Dr A L Meenakshisundaram, dean, Pudukottai government medical college hospital.

The idea of the cabin was first evolved in South Korea where the testing kiosk was created in public places calling people to volunteer for the test. It was adopted in Kerala by doctors and now has been adopted by Pudukottai government medical college hospital.

The adoption of this technique will ensure zero-infection possibility to doctors, he said. Doctors can collect the nasopharyngeal swab by extending their hands through two holes in the glass wall between them. Even if the patients sneeze or coughs during the process, it will not go inside the cabin, he said.