The Island/ANN

The Government Medical Officers Association (GMOA), yesterday, asked the government to resort to China-type lockdowns of certain parts of Sri Lanka to curb the spread of COVID-19.

Addressing the media yesterday in Colombo, Secretary of the GMOA, Dr. Haritha Aluthge said that the national action committee on COVID-19, appointed by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, should meet daily and inform the public of the decisions taken. "We can’t deny that certain parts of Negombo and Puttalam are especially vulnerable to COVID-19," he said.

Dr. Aluthge said the government should also systematically reduce the activities of ports and airports and finally close down the Bandaranaike International Airport. Persons with COVID-19 symptoms should not be sent to ordinary hospitals or private medical centres and there should be a mechanism to send them to designated hospitals that had the capacity to deal with COVID-19 cases.

"Steps should also be taken to increase the facilities at hospitals so that they are ready to deal with the future spread of the virus. Facilities at the ICUs should be expanded and tests conducted to identify COVID-19. All necessary equipment to ensure the safety of the hospital staff must be provided," he said.

The GMOA has conveyed their recommendations to President and Director General of Health, Dr. Anil Jasinghe asking them to take immediate action.

Dr. Aluthge said that by taking decisive steps, China had managed to control the situation and that there was a lot to learn from their methods. The GMOA had been warning the government of the spread of the virus to Sri Lanka from January but delays in the implementation of their recommendations had contributed to the virus entering the country and its current spread.

"The government is already two weeks late," he said.