Sero Survey Begins In 12 Odisha Districts

Bhubaneswar: The state-level serological survey began in 12 districts of Odisha on Sunday to assess and compare the age-specific prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in the general population and health care workers.

The ICMR-RMRC, Bhubaneswar, began the survey in Sambalpur, Sundargarh, Jharsuguda, Keonjhar, Khurda, Puri, Balasore, Mayurbhanj, Jajpur, Kandhamal, Kalahandi and Nabarangpur districts.

In a letter to the collectors and Chief District Medical and Public Health Officers (CDM & PHOs) of the 12 districts, Additional Chief Secretary, Health, Pradipta Kumar Mohapatra said that 6680 samples from 12 districts will be collected as per the micro plan. Samples will be collected from the general population and from 100 healthcare workers in each of these districts during the survey which will conclude on September 15.

Stating that the ICMR-RMRC team members will make all their travel, HR and logistics arrangements, the letter asked the district administration to provide support with the accommodation for the team members in the district and facilitate the collection of blood samples.

Mohapatra also directed the district administration to nominate a nodal person at the district level and inform their details (name, designation and contact number) to the Director, RMRC with whom their team can coordinate and carry out fieldwork.

“The findings from this survey will be useful in informing our COVID-19 management and vaccination strategy,” he pointed out.