A meeting to share lessons from the first lockdown and ways to improve coordination and service delivery during future lockdowns was held with the task force members and the sector heads on 21/10/2020 at the Dzongkhag Conference Hall.
The following points were discussed and proposed:
1. Possibility to provide medicine in bulk to last several months for those suffering from NCDs
2. Identified shops to be used as medicine drop -off points as per the prescriptions by Health Officials
3. Banks to identify agents in various locations to provide banking services
4. Garbage collection to be made on a timely basis in town and nearby areas and to identify collection points in the gewogs in consultation with the gewog officials to collect wastes from the gewogs
5. Agriculture Sector to propose ways to source vegetables during winter if lockdown happens in that season
6. Strict monitoring of prices of essential commodities during lockdown
7. Identify shops with capacity at strategic location for essential commodities delivery, including meat shops.
8. Committee should determine the number of shops to be identified in different locations.
9.School buses to be used as and when required to pick and drop passengers from the airport to the quarantine facilities. Buses to be properly disinfected and flight schedule to be shared with the MTO
10. If possible a private bus to be identified to provide transportation to critical patients (kidney) if no private vehicles of their own on payment or as zhabtog to Thimphu for dialysis
11. Carry out regular sensitization on health and safety protocols for De-Suups and RBP personnel
12. Earmark hotels in different locations for frontline workers
13. Municipal office to be used as Task Force Coordination Office during lockdown
14. De-Suup Gojay & RBP to coordinate and work out the number of De-Suups to be deployed during the lockdown in advance
15. Gewogs to remind the public to use health and safety protocols from time to time
16. Health Sector to study the possibility of setting up ORC in Drukgyel BHU & Shaba ORC in order to discourage people from visiting the hospital during the lockdown
17. Gewog to activate their Gewog Task Force from the respective Gewog Offices during the lockdown
18.Donation received during the lockdown should be routed through the Task Force for proper record and acknowledgement.
19.Use local cable TV and social media for information dissemination during the lockdown from time to time.
20.Toll Free numbers to be increased to six (3 BT & 3 TCell) and operated from 6 AM till 11 PM.
21.Application for vehicle movement permit during the lockdown, including those for the delivery of essential commodities should be scrutinized thoroughly.