BMC plans mass screening in slums as Dharavi doctors decide to reopen clinics

The slums of Dharavi are one of the city's most challenging hotspots and its residents are always at high risk as of now. Since the first case of coronavirus was found in Mumbai on March 9, the authorities across the state are scared about the slums, owing to its density of population. After a nationwide lockdown was announced, the clinics of Dharavi were shut down and the area was declared a hotspot. 

However, in an attempt to fight against the outbreak in the slums of Dharavi, 350 doctors' clinics will reopen as COVID-19 screening centres from Monday. With the coronavirus cases at a rise, general practitioners across the city have shut down out of the fear of getting infected.

However, as per a Mumbai Mirror report, the Mahim Dharavi Medical Practitioners Association (MDMPA) met BMC officials on Friday and agreed to not only reopen the clinics in the area but also assist the civic body in their efforts to curb the spread of the virus in the slums. Once the clinics reopen in Dharavi, the BMC is planning to conduct mass screening exercise to determine how far the virus may have spread.

The civic body will provide PPE kits to the medical workers and disinfect all the clinics before they reopen. Currently, the municipal corporation has been going door-to-door to screen the residents of Asia's largest slum. So far, the BMC has reportedly conducted thermal screening of 47,500 people and referred close to 1,000 for testing. 

Dharavi has recorded 241 coronavirus cases so far and 14 from the slums have succumbed to the pandemic. Based on the location of cases that have emerged, the BMC has chalked out five slum pockets within the slums as red zones and have segregated the residents from the area. The screening in Dharavi is focused on these five regions: Madina Nagar, Muslim Nagar, Mukund Nagar, Kalyanwadi, and Social Nagar. These five slum pockets have a combined population of about 50,000.

Dr Anil Pachnekar, who owns a clinic in Dharavi and is a trustee of MDMPA, told Mirror that their doctors had been helping BMC with door-to-door screening but it was very problematic to move in PPE kits amid the hot and humid climate. Therefore, they decided to reopen clinics and screen residents there. 

The doctors will initially conduct screening. If necessary, they will be sent to BMC quarantine centres and if the doctors feel that the person is showing symptoms, then they will refer testing of the person.

Additional municipal commissioner, Suresh Kakani said that the local doctors are known to the medical history of the people in Dharavi and since the patients know them, it would be helpful in receiving public co-operation.

In the meantime, a quarantine centre has already been readied with 300 beds at Rajiv Gandhi Sports Complex for Dharavi residents. Alongside, Dharavi municipal school has also prepared 600 beds for quarantine.