Compulsory traceability and centralized isolation for people who are exposed to coronavirus carriers (which are classified as F1) is crucial in combating the pandemic, Kinh Te & Do Thi reported, quoting Dr. Tran Nhu Duong, deputy director of the National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology.

Vietnam's Ministry of Health requires compulsory isolation for F1 people at concentrated establishments and under health workers’ supervision. Illustrative photo

F1 are those who who come into direct contact with Covid-19 patients or exposed to virus carriers within a range of 2 meters, regardless of how long the exposure. Therefore, F1 people are at a high risk of being infected with the Covid-19 and can be considered as potential patients.

As there have been no vaccines yet for Covid-19, it’s important to cut off the transmission routes. In order to do that, it is necessary to isolate the infection source so that it cannot spread the virus to the community, Dr. Duong, who also deputy head of the Task Force against Covid-19 in Danang city, the Covid-19 epicenter in Vietnam now.

The current strategy of Vietnam in the fight against Covid-19 in the community is detecting and isolating. There is no other way to detect it early than supervising and testing. And one of the key ways to detect F1 people is contact tracing.

“If F1 people are not detected and put under mass quarantine as soon as possible, they will be at a high risk of becoming Covid-19 patients and spreading the virus in the community,” Duong said.

He added that the first people at risk of being infected by F1 people are their own family members, then the community, and it will be hard to extinguish the outbreak.

Therefore, in the current period, the Ministry of Health requires compulsory isolation for F1 people at concentrated establishments and under health workers’ supervision.

The quarantine must comply with the guidance of the Ministry of Health to prevent infection in concentrated quarantine centers.

If F1 people strictly comply with these regulations, Covid-19 cross-infection in the quarantine centers is impossible, according to the expert.

At the time of writing, Vietnam has confirmed 983 coronavirus-infected cases, of which 467 are convalescents and 24 deaths.