Bhubaneswar: The Odisha chief minister, Naveen Patnaik, has expressed his anxiety over doctors and medicos are getting infected by the Covid-19 virus.

“I have been distressed to note that over the past few weeks there have been instances of service providers in health facilities getting infected with Covid,” Patnaik said Wednesday while interacting with the Covid-19 warriors in video conferencing.

Stating that this points to a probable breach in maintaining infection control practices, the chief minister has said, ” Please first ensure your safety and the safety of your team.” “I would like to emphasize again that you are the strength of the people in this long war”, he said and added.

He said that the health department should ensure that adequate supplies for personal protection and infection control are available at all levels in the field.

“It is therefore our collective responsibility to see that that infection control measures and personal protection protocols are scrupulously followed in our health facilities and by our healthcare workers in the field.”

Patnaik said “Refresher trainings on such protocols would be conducted where required.”

The chief minister said that the health department is to conduct a State-wide integrated campaign for house to house active surveillance for Covid, co-morbid conditions, TB, malaria and diarrhoea as the next few weeks are critical in controlling the spread of Covid as well as monsoon induced other communicable diseases.