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Hours after Nayagaon man’s death, his nurse at PGI tests positive
The patient was suspected of having contracted H1N1 virus and was being treated in the emergency ward of PGI, Chandigarh, but after he tested positive for coronavirus, 36 healthcare workers were quarantined, including 22 nursing officers and five doctors
A 32-year-old nursing officer at Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education Research (PGIMER) tested positive for coronavirus disease (Covid-19) on Tuesday. He had treated the 65-year-old coronavirus patient from Nayagoan in Mohali district who died on Tuesday afternoon.
The patient was suspected of having contracted H1N1 virus and was being treated along with other patients in the emergency ward. After he was tested positive, 36 healthcare workers were quarantined in the hospital, including 22 nursing officers and five doctors.
Officials said two nursing officers showed symptoms of the disease. One of them tested positive, while the report of the other nurse is awaited. The nurse has been admitted in the communicable disease ward of the institute and is stated to be stable.
His nine-month-old daughter and wife have been quarantined.
PGIMER director Dr Jagat Ram confirmed that the nursing officer had tested positive.
The other Chandigarh case is a Sector 49 resident, who is a doctor at Mayo hospital in Sector 69, Mohali. After confirmation of his results, he was admitted in Mayo hospital itself. The condition of the doctor is stated to be stable.
With this, the number of positive cases in Chandigarh has spiked from eight to 15 in the past two days.
The first case was reported on March 18, after a 23-year-old student, who flew back from London tested positive. Later, her five contacts, including her brother and mother, tested positive.
A 22-year-old mechanic, who returned from Dubai, tested positive on Friday after which his mother and two friends were diagnosed with Covid-19, too. Besides, a couple who returned from Canada on March 13 tested positive on Monday.
