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Introduction and Objectives COVID-19 is an infectious disease caused by newly discovered coronavirus. Preventive measures such as Hand hygiene, maintaining social distance, and using personal protective equipment, are the main strategies for limiting the spread of disease. The main objective of this study is to assess facility availability and adherence to those preventive measures in Galle district, Sri Lanka. Methods A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted. Study had 3 parts, 1) observation for facility availability, 2) observation and 3) questionnaire for adherence.  Direct, structured observation has been conducted.  Ten divisional secretarial areas selected randomly, each area supermarket, bank, bus stand, dress point, general goods store selected (total 50) randomly for observation. Quota sampling used for select individuals to observation and questionnaire.  Result Data collected from 50 places and 384 people. Majority of places had a handwashing facility (82%) clean (97.5%) running water (74%) soap (92.6%) and posters requesting to wear masks (72%). Facilities enhance social distance, poster on correct hand washing technique not displayed (86%) in most of the places. Majority of the study population adhered to hand washing (69.27%) and wore face masks (90.36%), Yet, the majority didn’t maintain the social distance (63.02%). Self-declared adherence was good (53.91%) in the majority of the study population. Discussion and Conclusions It is necessary to give attention to display posters on handwashing, correct technique of handwashing, and social distancing in crowded places. Poorest adherence revealed to maintain social distancing.

COVID 19 is a global pandemic caused by newly discovered Corona virus. Hospital preparedness is essential to prevent spreading of infection to hospital staff, patients and provide good quality care to COVID 19 patient and other patients. This article shares the experience of hospital preparedness at base level hospital in Sri Lanka. Sharing experiences will help to learn lesson and enhance the capacity to face COVID-19 pandemic successfully.

COVID-19 is a contagious respiratory illness caused by SARS-CoV-2. As such, it is challenging to maintain the safety of healthcare workers while delivering care to patients during the COVID-19 pandemic. The health sector has thus implemented various strategies to enhance hospital preparedness and ensure safety. The aim of this study is then to assess the hospital’s preparedness for COVID-19 at a base hospital in Galle District, to ensure safety. A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among medical officers and nursing officers in Galle district. A self-administered questionnaire and an observational checklist were used to collect data. Response rate was 90.52%. Majority were female 88.8% (n=221). Majority of the participants were between 30-39 years of age (n=144 %). Study sample consisted of 62 (24%) medical officers and 196 (76%) nursing officers and the majority (n=152, 58.9%) had more than 10 years of work experience. Furthermore, the majority 81.4% (n=210) were aware of updates about guidelines and circulars regarding COVID-19 issued by the Ministry of Health. Frequent hand washing was practiced by 96.9% (n=250) while social distancing was not practiced by a considerable number of participants (n=77, 29.8%). 90.7% (n=234) participants were not exposed to training on outbreak management. A considerable proportion was not confident about the correct practice of donning and doffing (n=60, 23.2%). The absence of a dedicated respiratory ward and a separate venue at emergency treatment unit to manage patients with respiratory symptoms were noted. There were deficiencies of adherence to social distancing, training, self-confidence and physical arrangement of hospital. Ergo, it is noted that implementing training programs on outbreak response and building trust between the institution and staff on safety will improve the preparedness in future outbreaks.