Hyderabad: Fear of the novel coronavirus has begun taking its toll in the city, as 20 more persons were admitted to hospital to test for the infection. In one curious case, two Chinese nationals employed by a private company here were not allowed back at work after they returned from a holiday in China.
In another case, a private hospital jumped the gun and sent samples collected from a patient to Gandhi General Hospital for testing but in the process flouting government guidelines regarding the suspected infection.
Officials said 11 persons were admitted to Gandhi and nine others to Fever Hospital on Thursday for check-ups and testing for coronavirus. The results are expected on Friday. So far, tests on 37 patients have returned negative.
In a case that highlights the fear over the disease, two Chinese nationals retu-rned to Hyderabad from China in early January. They were tested, but still the employer prevented them from joining work. They were back at Gandhi General Hospital for a second round of tests.
“The results of the first test we conducted were negative,” Gandhi Hospital superintendent Dr Shravan said on Thursday evening.
“But their employer is reported to insist they be tested again. We have collected their samples and the results will be available tomorrow.”
He added: “They are in a miserable situation. They are asymptomatic. They are not even from Wuhan, the epicentre of the disease outbreak. They come from a village about 1,200 km away from Wuhan. We will do everything we can to help them.”
Gandhi Hospital also saw unexpected action on Thursday when a popular private hospital, in contravention of the laid-down procedures with respect to testing or treating of a possible coronavirus case, sent samples from a patient it suspected of having the disease for testing. “There is a laid-down protocol for these procedures,” Dr Shravan said.
“No private hospital is allowed to collect samples as this procedure has to be done as per the Central government’s guidelines. They cannot collect samples and send them for testing. What the private hospital should have done is to refer the patient to us for further investigations and possible treatment.”
The samples were rejected. The private hospital was advised to refer the patient to Gandhi Hospital. Till around 7 pm on Thursday, the patient did not arrive. It is believed that the private hospital did not refer the patient as advised.
