Warren Dodd and Jim Wallace, professors in the School of Public Health and Health Systems, recently received a grant from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the Government of Canada to work with a University of Toronto team and international partners to develop guidelines for hospitals and primary care settings in the Philippines and Sri Lanka for the management of COVID-19.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has produced technical guidance but this must be adapted and translated into guidelines for healthcare workers in low- and middle-income countries. The team is working with Ministries of Health, physicians and civil society organizations to pilot and evaluate the guidelines to assess their feasibility in settings where resources may be limited.
The integrated plan will include role-specific guidelines to manage COVID-19 suspects and cases regarding hospital patient flow, infection control, patient supervision and support in communities.