Based on South Korea model, Kerala sets up sample collection kiosk

Kerala : Kerala has become to first state in India to set up a kiosk where people can come and submit their sample for coronavirus test.

The walk-in sample kiosk (WISK) is a mobile cubicle with heavy sealed glass front, it is fixed with an extended glove attached to its front. A medical practitioner, standing inside the cubicle, can collect swab samples through this glove without exposing himself.

Ernakulam district collector S Suhas said these kiosks will be set up in all four dedicated Covid-19 hospitals in the district. This appears to be the safest method to collect the swab samples.

After a medical practitioner collects the swab sample, gloves can be santitized from the outside and the practitioner will not have to change the heavy personal protection equipment (PPE) after every patient.

“We need more such kiosks in Kerala. It will help conduct more tests. It will also reduce the growing demand for PPE kits which we will need if we enter the state of community spread. These kiosks will also encourage suspected patients to get in and take tests quickly without undergoing rigours in the hospital,” Hindustan Times quoted Dr A S Anoop Kumar, head of the critical care unit in Baby Memorial Hospital in Kozhikkode.

The kiosk comes at a cost of Rs 40,000 and has a sample collecting capacity of 40-50 per hour. The state health department said it will set up more such kiosks in some of the worst-affected areas after gauging its success.

For the first time ever, kiosk was seen in South Korea. The model helped the country contain the spread of the disease. Following this, the World Health Organisation had urged all countries to emulate the model.