The Da Nang Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control has just issued guidance on a pilot programme on quarantining direct contacts of COVID-19 patients at home. The move aims to prevent overcrowding and cross-infection at concentrated quarantine sites.

Initially, the home quarantine plan is expected to be piloted in the districts of Ngu Hanh Son and Hoa Vang. Afterwards, depending on the effectiveness of the pilot work, based on the actual developments of the virus resurgence, the plan will be adjusted, supplemented and completed, and the submitted to the competent authorities for consideration and application in other local districts.

Of special note, the plan is applied to close contacts who complete their mandatory quarantine at local concentrated facilities for 7 days and have negative PCR test results conducted on the 1st, 4th and 7th days. They will must self-quarantine at home for another 7 days. After this home quarantine period is over, they must continue to self-monitor their health status at home as prescribed.

In order to be eligible for home quarantine, houses must stand separately from others and warning signs should be put in front of the houses.

The room for the quarantined person must be separate from the family’s common spaces and does not share the central air-conditioning system, and be disinfected daily.

Those under home isolation must strictly adhere to relevant quarantine rules, including not leaving the isolation rooms during the quarantine period, not coming into contact with others or pets.

Also, they must install and turn on the Viet Nam Health Declaration or Bluezone apps, and make regular health declarations, monitor their health status, and updating information on these apps.

The elderly and persons with underlying health conditions needing medical care must not stay at the same houses with those under home isolation.

Besides, other people sharing the same houses must not directly contact the F1s. They should also carry out self-health monitoring and minimise leaving the house.

Medical workers from ward-level medical centres must collect information and examine the health condition of the direct contacts and their caregivers on a daily basis.

The community-based COVID-19 task forces and related units are in charge of supervising  the compliance with the home quarantine regulations.

Reporting by LE HUNG – Translating by A.T