CUTTACK: Tension ran high at the Acharya Harihar Postgraduate Institute of Cancer (AHPGIC) on Saturday night after patients, who tested positive for Covid- 19, threatened the healthcare workers to infect them with the virus by coming in physical contact with them.

The incident came to fore after video of the incident went viral on social media platforms on Sunday.

In the video, the Covid infected cancer patients were seen creating ruckus and threatening to touch others when the health officials were shifting 38 patients to a designated Covid hospitals with the help of NDRF personnel.

They alleged that they contracted the virus due to gross mismanagement by AHPGIC authorities and refused to leave the hospital.

“Cancer had infected us and now we have been infected with coronavirus. We are going to die and we will not allow you to live,” they said while chasing the Covid warriors to touch them. They protested their shifting to designated Covid hospitals apprehending that they would be deprived of availing necessary cancer treatment.

Later, local police reached the spot and pacified the patients. Sources said a cancer patient from Ganjam district, who had tested positive on June 24, turned out to be a super spreader infecting 111 persons in the hospital. Mismanagement in ensuring admission of the patient by not adhering to Covid- 19 protocols is attributed to have led to a devastating situation at the premier cancer care hospital. The patient had come to AHPGIC for receiving chemotherapy on June 19.

Without screening, the hospital authorities had admitted him to the 30-bed main cancer ward where another 30 patients were undergoing treatment on the floor. At least two attendants were engaged for each one of the 60 patients in the overcrowded ward. Later, the patient was referred to Pulmonary Medicine department of SCB Medical College and Hospital for check up. However, doctors of the department did not advise to isolate the patient and go for collection of swab test for Covid-19.

On June 21, the patient was shifted to a paying bed located near Pain and Palliative care unit of the hospital. The infected patient had come in contact with more than 150 persons, including patients, attendants, visitors and healthcare workers of the hospital.

The patient’s swab sample collected on June 21 had tested positive for Covid-19 on June 24 following which the health department officials had to face a tough task to trace his contacts.

Collector Bhabani Shankar Chayani said the Saturday night incident was a fallout of an altercation between patients and the team engaged in shifting them to Covid hospitals.

“The issue has been resolved and all infected persons have been shifted from AHPGIC to different Covid hospitals,” he said. When asked about the allegations of mismanagement at the cancer hospital, Chayani said the matter is being investigated and appropriate action would be taken if any lapses were found.