Latest COVID-19 patient violates home quarantine & went shopping in Nongrim Hills

Syllad | The Rising MeghalayaMay 11, 2020

The process of tracing the high risk and low risk contacts of the patient, who was recently tested positive for coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has been activated after she broke her quarantine before tested positive for the virus.   

This was revealed at a daily press briefing by the Deputy Chief Minister Prestone Tynsong in the presence of Health Minister AL Hek and Director of Health Services (MI) Dr Aman War here on Monday.

Tynsong told reporters that the number of samples collected and tested so far stands at 2480 out which 2342 were negative while 125 test results are awaited. “We still have two positive cases after 10 patients have recovered and 1 died,” he said.

The fresh case was reported on May 9, after a maid servant – who is one among the 181 primary or high risk contacts of the deceased victim (L) Dr John L Sailo Ryntathiang, Director of Bethany Hospital – was tested positive.

The maid servant was earlier tested negative on April 16, after she completed 14 days home-quarantine but the result came out positive after the third test was conducted on the primary contacts.

Tynsong however informed the fifth test result of the other positive patient, a 42-year-old woman, who is a family friend of the first COVID-19 patient, is still awaited.  

Asked on the concerns expressed by the residents of Nongrim Hills, Dr War admitted that it is true that the maid servant had came out of the house to buy food items for her family last week.

“That is very true that the patient broke her quarantine once to buy some food stuff for her family but (now) she and her family are under (strict) quarantine,” he said.

In view of this, DHS informed that the tracing of high risk and low risk contacts of the maid servant is going on.

“We have been able to identify most of the high risk and low risk contacts,” Dr War said.

Some of the residents of the area have alleged that they have saw the patient buying meat from a particular shop at the locality before the announcement of her being tested positive.

Whether any advisory will be issued to the residents including the meat seller and those who came in close contact with her, DHS said a dedicated team entrusted with the exercise will accordingly issue advisory depending on how close was the contact between her and the people that she came into contact.

Meanwhile, the deputy chief minister maintained that the information given by the government on the maid servant stands and that there is no confusion while reacting to a statement issued by the son of (L) Dr Sailo.

The statement made by the son of the deceased doctor had claimed that the latest case was not from the same house of (L) Dr Sailo.

“There was no contact between the latest case and any of the members of (L) Dr.J.L.Sailo Ryntathiang  family  since 15th April, 2020.Therefore, the contacts whom she has been exposed to from 15th April onwards cannot be accounted for,”  he had stated.