Abstract:
COVID-19 is a pandemic from pneumonia of unknown origin, first reported in Wuhan city China as information
extracted from the World Health Organization. It was first reported in Sri Lanka on 27 January 2020 by a Chinese
tourist. Handing the COVID-19 situation with scarce recourses within a limited time was challenging for the
government hospitals. This paper aims to describe the practical and cost-effective actions implemented at the Base
Hospital Udugama to enhance the health system resilience to prepare, respond to, and recover from the COVID 19 pandemic. We did a retrospective evaluation of the COVID-19 control project at the Base Hospital Udugama.
The daily interventions carried out at the Base Hospital Udugama to prepare, respond and recover from the
COVID-19 pandemic were documented in a journal. Also, we preserved evidence through photographs while
collecting data from the routine hospital records. The temporally established COVID-19 coordinating committee
managed all the activities. The committee increased awareness among staff and the public, maintained stock of
Personal Protective Equipment, established preventive measures, established an isolation unit, arranged community
sample collection, continued essential routine healthcare services and distribution of the clinic drugs to the doorsteps
of the patients while protecting the Hospital staff against COVID-19. Even though the management of the COVID 19 pandemic was a challenge to the Base Hospital Udugama, with strong leadership and effective coordination with
different units and departments within and beyond the hospital, it was possible to manage the response efficiently
and effectively.
We recommend enhancing the health system's resilience through timely investments in peripheral hospitals coupled
with capacity building targeting multiple hazards, including pandemics.
