61st Covid-19 patient of Odisha visited five hospitals before testing positive

Minati Singha | TNN | Apr 19, 2020, 22:06 IST

Photo for representative purpose only

BHUBANESWAR: With no new Covid-19 positive case detected in the last 24 hours the total count of infected persons in Odisha remained at 61 on Sunday.
The Balasore district administration declared three wards as containment zones on Sunday, a day after a 58-year old person tested Covid-19 positive in Balasore town. The patient no-61 visited at least five hospitals for treatment of fever and flu like symptoms before he was finally tested positive with coronavirus on Saturday at AIIMS, Bhubaneswar.
Health and family welfare department sources said, he travelled to Jharkhand on March 13 by a hired vehicle and returned on the same day to Balasore. He went to District Headquarter Hospital (DHH), Balasore for treatment of fever on April 7 by his two-wheeler and returned home on April 8. Again went to DHH on April 13 and was referred to SCB MCH, Cuttack on the same day. But he went to Apollo Hospital in Bhubaneswar where doctors referred him to Capital Hospital on April 14. Then Capital Hospital sent him to KIMS Covid Hospital where he underwent treatment from April 14-16 and discharged. Again the patient admitted in AIIMS, Bhubaneswar on April 16 and his sample tested positive on April 18.
“Three wards in Neliabag area under Balasore Municipality area have been declared and containment zones and all its entry and exit points have been sealed for a week. All essentials, groceries, medicines and other items for the residents of the locality will be made available inside and no one will be allowed to go out or get in,” said K Sudarshan Chakravarthy, Balasore collector.
The district administration has started medical check-up of all 400 households in the locality while the whole area was sanitised on Sunday by the fire services personnel, informed sub-collector, Nilu Mohapatra. “All people who came in contact with the people are being identified and kept in quarantine. The Covid-19 person is undergoing treatment in an exclusive coronavirus hospital in Bhubaneswar,” Mohapatra said.
On Sunday Bhadrak district administration lifted restrictions in two containment zones of Chrampa and Erein in Bhadrak town after no positive cases detected from the area in the last two weeks. Shops that repair or service electricals and electronics appliances including fan, air cooler, water purifier, mobile phones and computer accessories will remain open in Bhadrak Municipal area from 6 am to 1 pm. In other parts of Bhadrak district the shops will open till 5pm. Similarly shops dealing in construction equipment and supplies such as cement, rods and chips can function till 5pm in rural areas and till 1 pm in Bhadrak Municipality area from Monday. Wholesalers operating in the town will take permission for extra hour, twitted Bhadrak collector Gyana Das.
With maximum number of 46 of the total 61 Covid-19 positive cases detected from Bhubaneswar, containment regulations will continue in containment zones in Bhubaneswar including Surya Nagar, Bomikhal, Satya Nagar, even after April 20.
The state government continued its fight against Covid-19 as testing for the virus began at Veer Surendra Sai Institute of Medical Science and Research, Burla from Sunday. Besides, the chief minister Naveen Patnaik will inaugurate five new Covid-19 hospitals in different districts of Angul, Bargarh, Jagatsinghpur, Nabarangpur and Sundargarh on Monday.
The virus has spread in 10 districts of Odisha including Khurda, Cuttack, Bhardrak, Sundargarh, Kendrapada, Puri, Jajpur, Kalahandi, Balasore and Dhenkanal. At present there are 36 positive cases with 24 patients have recovered from the infection and one death.