Residents crowd Pune hospitals to get ‘negative’ stamp; docs say foreign returnees are priority

With Covid-19 (coronavirus) positive cases being reported in the city, many people are visiting government hospitals putting additional pressure on the staff. The

With Covid-19 (coronavirus) positive cases being reported in the city, many people are visiting government hospitals putting additional pressure on the staff. The foreign returnees are sharing travel history and insisting on the health staff to declare them negative for the virus after carrying out tests.

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Doctors said that not all foreign return passengers are likely to get infected and should not rush to hospitals and put themselves in the risk of exposing to infection as positive or suspected patients and the staff treating them are present in hospitals. Residents who have not visited any foreign country are also rushing to hospitals for tests.

Dr Sudhir Patsute, superintendent of Naidu hospital said, “As per the latest update on the infection, we take swab samples of only those who have come in direct contact with confirmed Covid-19 cases or those who have travelled to the high risk countries as mentioned by the National Centre for Disease Control and show symptoms.”

He said the initial swap samples may show no symptoms as the infected person may suffer symptoms later. “If a person is tested negative for the virus, but later develops symptoms then it may turn out to be counterproductive as the initial test results showed negative and he may ignore precaution and could infect more people.”

Patsute said those who have been in transit at the airport of affected countries are not necessarily infected. He said, “They may be exposed, but they are not necessarily infected and so it is not necessary for them to submit their samples. However, depending on the doctor’s discretion, we may collect the samples.”

The district administration has called for all foreign return passengers since March 1 to isolate themselves at home.

A resident was directed by a private hospital, where he visited on Friday after suffering from flu-like symptoms, to visit Naidu hospital. He said, “The doctors at Naidu refused to have any tests done and said that only foreign return travellers are being screened. The government must start multilayered screening like thermal screening and other modes of screening like China to clear doubts among people like us.”

Another resident who visited Naidu after a hospital recommended him for a Covid-19 test said he too was sent back as he did not have foreign travel history.

Dr Avinash Bhondwe, Maharashtra state president of Indian Medical Association (IMA), said, “We have had no official communication from the state government yet. We have launched awareness campaigns on our own.” Due to lack of communication between the Indian Medical Association, private doctors are now referring patients with flu-like symptoms to Naidu Hospital which is the only authorised government hospital to collect samples in Pune city.