Clinical Management of COVID-19 - Living Guidance

The Strategic preparedness and response plan outlines the World Health Organization (WHO) strategic objectives to end the COVID-19 pandemic and assists national stakeholders with developing a structured approach to their response. The WHO's main objectives for COVID-19 are to suppress transmission and provide optimized care for all patients; and save lives 3) minimize the impact of the epidemic on health systems, social services and economic activity.

To achieve these objectives, the WHO Operational considerations for case management of COVID-19 in health facility and community describes key actions that should be taken in different scenarios: no cases; sporadic cases; clusters of cases; and community transmission, in order to enable delivery of clinical and public health services in a timely fashion.
The guidance in this document is based on the above strategic priorities, and is intended for clinicians involved in the care of patients with suspected or confirmed COVID-19. It is not meant to replace clinical judgment or specialist consultation but rather to strengthen frontline clinical management and the public health response. Considerations for special and vulnerable populations, such as paediatric patients, older people and pregnant women, are highlighted throughout the text.