One tests negative, three new suspected cases in Chandigarh

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 13

A junior resident from the Department of Virology of the PGIMER, who recently visited Kerala, has tested negative for Covid.

Meanwhile, samples of two more persons — a Sector 28 resident, who had recently visited Australia, and another from Sector 19, who had returned from France — were collected at the GMSH-16 today. The samples of another elderly resident of Burail with travel history to Saudi Arabia were collected at the GMCH-32.

Screening centre at PGI

The PGI has started a special screening centre at new OPD block for patients with symptoms like cold, cough or fever along with travel history. Patients will be sent to the screening centre and from they will be referred for further treatment, including collection of samples for Covid testing, if required, and admission in isolation ward of communicable disease.

Home quarantine guidelines
Who is a contact in context of Covid?

A person living in the same household as a Covid case or had direct physical contact with him or her. A person who was in a closed environment or had face-to-face contact with the affected person at a distance within one metre, including air travel. The epidemiological link may have occurred within a 14-day period before the onset of illness in case under consideration.

Home quarantined person should

• Stay in a well-ventilated single room preferably with an attached/separate toilet
• If another family member needs to stay in the same room, it’s advisable to maintain a distance of at least one metre between the two.
• Needs to stay away from elderly people, pregnant women, children and persons with co-morbidities within the household
• Restrict his/her movement within the house
• Under no circumstances attend any social/religious gathering e.g. wedding, condolences, etc

Instructions for family members

• Only an assigned family member should be tasked with taking care of the affected person
• Avoid shaking soiled linen or direct contact with skin
• Use disposable gloves when cleaning the surfaces or handling soiled linen. Wash hands after removing gloves
• Visitors should not be allowed. In case the person being quarantined becomes symptomatic, all his close contacts will be home quarantined (for 14 days) and followed up for an additional 14 days or till the report of such case turns out negative on lab testing

Environmental sanitation

• Clean and disinfect frequently touched surfaces in the quarantined person’s room daily with 1% sodium hypochlorite solution
• Clean and disinfect toilet surfaces daily with regular household bleach solution/phenolic disinfectants
• Clean clothes and other linen used by the person separately using common household detergent and dry