Bhubaneswar: Following allegations of violation of the Standard Operating Procedure to handle suspected cases of COVID-19, Director of AIIMS-Bhubaneswar Prof Gitanjali Padmanabhan on Friday said three doctors, who examined the patient, have been sent on home isolation.
Stating that there was no violation of protocol, she said there were some concerns, which have been addressed.
“The patient came to the hospital on the morning of March 19 with symptoms of COVID-19 and was examined by doctors. His swab samples were collected and he was then kept in the isolation ward. We received the samples report that night confirming the infection,” she said.
The case pertains to a 19-year-old youth, who returned to Bhubaneswar from the UK on March 18, and later tested positive for the deadly virus. This is the second confirmed case in Odisha.
The Director further said that the patient was driven straight home from the airport on April 18 and was brought the hospital the following morning after he developed some symptoms of the infection. “He has since been kept in the isolation ward and his condition is stable,” she said.
His close contacts are in home isolation, she added.
Stating that the hospital was equipped to handle such pandemic, she requested people not to ostracise doctors. “We have come across cases where house owners have barred doctors from entering their premises. I would request them not to do so,” she said.
AIIM-Bhubaneswar has a six-bed isolation ward and a team of doctors to attend to such cases.
Earlier, answering queries about contacts of the infected persons at AIIMS-Bhubaneswar, government chief spokesperson on COVID-19 Subroto Baghi said they were looking into the matter with utmost urgency at the highest possible level. “All concerned people have been kept under observation,” he added.
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