Medical workers collect samples for COVID-19 testing. (photo: https://ncov.moh.gov.vn)

HCMC’s health sector has imposed numerous measures to contain the COVID-19 pandemic, including tracing people who have had close contact with patients to head off infection transmissions in the community. The city has set up a Coordination Center for SARS-CoV-2 Testing to coordinate taking samples, digitizing data, transporting specimens to the lab, and collecting results.

Deputy Director of the HCMC Health Department Nguyen Huu Hung said: “While collecting samples in the community, we have to assess the risks of infection and do targeted testing, not massive testing.”

15 days of social distancing will be enforced to slow coronavirus infections, particularly of the highly infectious Delta variant. 2,500 medical teams with 15,000 members have been established to collect 1.3 million samples and process 400,000 pooling samples a day. Quick tests will be piloted at industrial parks.

Massive testing aims to sort out COVID-19 patients from the community in order to establish safe zones and narrow high-risk areas.

Doctor Truong Huu Khanh, an epidemiologist at Children’s Hospital No.1 said: “When a pooling sample has a positive result, we need to do quick or PCR tests on separate samples so we can have the results within 6 hours. We have to identify the F0s and then organize systematic tracing.”

Ho Chi Minh City has launched a campaign to set up COVID-19 free safe zones that will involve the community in containing the pandemic.