Local governments have been asked to increase the supply of COVID-19 related drugs and antigen test kits as many people living in urban areas are expected to return to their hometowns for the upcoming New Year holiday and Spring Festival, according to a notice released on Friday.
Spring Festival, or Chinese New Year, is the most important traditional Chinese festival and features family reunions and a travel rush. The upcoming Spring Festival falls on Jan 22.
Medical facilities and drugstores in townships and villages should increase their inventories of fever and cough drugs, traditional Chinese medicine and antigen test kits, according to the notice by the joint prevention and control mechanism of the State Council.
The amount of antigen test kits in stock at the township and village hospitals should reach 15 to 20 percent of the total population in the area, and more densely populated regions are encouraged to further increase stocks, according to the notice.
All township hospitals should be equipped with fever clinics and they should be open to the public, the notice said.
They also need to set up 24-hour hotlines to answer villagers' questions about the contagion, it said.
Township governments and village committees need to gather information of people returning from other places, and remind them to monitor their health, wear face masks and reduce contacts with elderly family members, especially those with underlying conditions, the notice said.
If returnees show COVID-19 related symptoms, such as fever, cough, fatigue and sore throat, they can contact village and township hospitals for help and medical services, it said.
Asymptomatic and mild patients are advised to recuperate at home, refrain from going out and limit contact with families. Patients with more serious symptoms should go to fever clinics or transfer to bigger hospitals, the notice said.
Special attention is required for key groups of people, such as the elderly with chronic diseases, pregnant women and seniors who live alone, and a health condition database should be established for them, it said.
The notice also stressed accelerating vaccination efforts for those aged 60 and above in rural areas, especially those older than 80. Green channels and mobile vaccination services should be available to make it more convenient for them to get vaccinated, it said.
Zhai Dalong, a doctor at a village hospital in Daming county, Hebei province, said village and township doctors have gained rich experience in fighting the pandemic over the past three years and are capable and confident of confronting the disease.
Township and village hospitals have conducted training for doctors on COVID-19 controls and they wear masks, face shields and gloves in their daily work, Zhai said at a news conference.
Village doctors have also embraced online medical services and offered guidance to villages via phones and WeChat messaging channels, he said.
All elderly people aged 65 and above in his village have been assigned family doctors, who check their health conditions every week, he added.
"We are not only doctors and patients, but more like families and friends, helping and caring for each other."