Maintaining COVID norms amid deluge has become a hurdle for the health care teams.
As the flood situation in Assam is worsening each day, the state health department is sending out rural health teams to the affected areas. The team of doctors, nurses and health workers from rural health centre in flood-hit Morigaon districts are reaching out to the victims amid surging floodwaters.
In the flood-ravaged areas, people are packed together either on embankments or highlands and there are high chances of transmission of coronavirus and other harmful diseases.
Ambia Khatun and Nasima Khatun both are working as ASHA workers and travel to Ashi Ghar village in a country boat to provide basic health care facilities to people amid COVID-19 crisis.
"For Covid pandemic we have surveyed and kept watch on every house, we have worked hard on quarantine of those who returned from outside" Ambia Katun said.
NDTV travelled along with one of the rural medical team to see how these health workers are keeping a tab on COVID-19 symptoms and ensuring proper health facilities to flood-hit people.
"During floods it is challenging for us since we don't have boats of our own, we borrow and work." said Nasima Khatun.
The teams carry basic medicines and rapid tests kits for coronavirus and malaria.
"There are health issues at these times, diarrhea and skin infections are frequent so we examine and carry medicines," said one of the doctor Krishna Borgohian.
Maintaining COVID norms amid deluge has become a hurdle for the health care teams.
"In rural belts people are still not aware of covid norm; we try to educate them as well on wearing mask and sanitization," Funu Kakati, another doctor said.
As many as 93 died and over 22 lakh people have been affected across 33 districts in Assam due to the floods. The state has recorded over 26,700 coronavirus cases including 64 deaths.