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Chandigarh steps up Covid vigil, mandatory testing for patients at govt hospitals
Comes amid a surge in China and other countries; Chandigarh will also be carrying out random testing of patients reporting at OPDs
Amid central guidelines to step up Covid surveillance across the country in view of surging cases in China and other countries, the UT health department on Wednesday announced mandatory testing for patients being admitted at Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH), Sector 32, and Government Multi-Specialty Hospital, Sector 16. The UT will also be carrying out random testing of patients reporting at OPDs.
Though the UT is reporting no or few fresh infections daily, the step has been taken as a precautionary measure to avert any surge in the future.
UT health secretary Yashpal Garg said, “After receiving an alert from the Centre, we have decided to go for mandatory Covid testing of all patients being admitted at emergency and other wards of GMCH-32 and GMSH-16. Patients reporting at OPDs with flu-like symptoms will also be asked to undergo RT-PCR tests. Random testing of OPD patients will also be done.”
The health secretary advised healthcare staff to take precautionary measures and wear face masks while performing their assigned duties.
Until Wednesday, only people having flu-like symptoms, including fever, cough or difficulty in breathing, were being tested for Covid-19 in Chandigarh.
On Tuesday, Union secretary for health Rajesh Bhushan had sent a notice to all states and union territories to ramp up genome sequencing in wake of surge in Covid cases in countries like Japan, United States of America, Republic of Korea, Brazil and China, raising fears of a fourth wave of pandemic. “Monitoring the trends of existing variants is of crucial importance. All states are requested to ensure that samples of all positive cases, on a daily basis, are sent to the designated genome sequencing laboratories for testing,” the notice had stated.
PGIMER to stick to random testing
Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER) director Dr Vivek Lal said, “As cases are increasing in other countries, people must follow Covid-appropriate behaviour, especially wearing of face masks, to avoid any possible surge. We will continue testing patients in OPDs and other wards, only if they show Covid-related symptoms.”
No active case in Chandigarh
As on Wednesday, Chandigarh had no active patients. As many as 116 people were tested for the virus on the day, however, none were found positive.
No restrictions in Mohali, Panchkula
Meanwhile, Mohali and Panchkula have not announced any new restrictions. “We haven’t received any new advisory yet. There has been no death due to Covid in the past three months and we haven’t received any Covid patient for the past one month. We have been regularly sensitising people to wear masks in public places and take all necessary precautions,” said Mohali civil surgeon Adarsh Pal Kaur.
No new cases were reported in Panchkula either.
The tricity had last witnessed a surge in January, when the country was in the grip of the third wave of Covid. Chandigarh had recorded 23,593 cases and 43 fatalities in a single month. The cases started receding in February but saw an upward trend in July and August. But after fluctuating cases, the graph drastically dropped in December this year. So far in December, UT had reported only five Covid cases and no fatality. Since the pandemic broke out, UT has reported a total of 99,342 cases of which 98,161 recovered and 1,181 died.
“The situation is under control in Chandigarh and there is no need to panic, however, people must follow Covid-appropriate behavior and get vaccinated as the virus can still be lethal for aged, co-morbid and unvaccinated people,” Garg said, adding that people can get vaccinated from GMSH-16.
