Osaka City dispatches medical teams to facilities for people with disabilities with guidance on measures against COVID

From NHK

August 5 2022

OSAKA – As the spread of the new coronavirus continues, medical teams have been dispatched to facilities for people with disabilities, where normal infection control measures are difficult, such as being unable to wear masks, and efforts have begun to provide guidance on infection control measures.

Since the beginning of this month (July), there have been a series of reports of new coronavirus infections at commuter facilities for people with disabilities in Osaka City.

For this reason, Osaka City has begun efforts to dispatch a specialized medical team to the facility to provide guidance on infection control, and on the 4th, the medical team visited a facility attended by about 50 children with developmental disorders.

At the facility, the children were out of the room, so the door could not be opened, and there was only one window that could be opened, so ventilation was an issue.

Therefore, the medical team suggested that a small fan be attached to the small window on the door to create a flow of air in the room.

In addition, he advised that children who refrained from brushing their teeth for fear of spreading infection should not put toothbrushes together and do it in small groups to prevent infection.

Masayoshi Kobayashi, a medical team member of the KISA 2 team, said, “When it comes to infection control, we tend to restrict movement, but I think we can find a way to loosen it a little by assessing the infection control necessary for children to live a lively life.”

In addition, Kazuyo Imoto, director of the child development support center “Kinderheim”, said, “I always wondered if this was all right because I was fumbling about infection control. It was helpful,” he said.