Health team surveils area where first positive case was reported

The district health team has started active surveillance of at least 50 houses in Sector 9 after the city’s first positive case of Covid-19 was reported from the

The district health team has started active surveillance of at least 50 houses in Sector 9 after the city’s first positive case of Covid-19 was reported from the area. A 26-year-old woman, a resident of the sector, tested positive for the novel coronavirus on Monday and is currently undergoing treatment at Fortis Hospital in the city.

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As part of the Covid-19 containment strategy, the rapid response team has identified 50 houses within a three-kilometre radius of the patient’s house. “There are guidelines as part of the containment strategy and we are following that. The surveillance process started on March 14, two days after the woman contacted us citing her travel history and mild symptoms,” said Dr Jaswant Singh Punia, chief medical officer.

On Monday, the health department confirmed that the five family members of the patient — three women, one man, and a three-month-old baby — had tested negative.

The rapid response team along with the staff at the primary health centre (PHC) of the area, including Ashas (health workers), ANMs (auxiliary nurses) and a medical officer, are investigating 50 families in the periphery. The department has made its 19 primary health centres (PHCs) and 13 community health centres (CHCs) in urban areas active to deal with investigations, as they are more accessible to the local population of the area.

“During the training for Covid-19 surveillance, we were told to investigate the areas within the three-kilometre radius of a confirmed case in the city. Virus can be prevented from spreading if it is handled at the first stage, when a single person tests positive. If not addressed timely, it can affect people in small clusters, such as a residential area. Therefore, advice has been issued to conduct a survey,” a member of the rapid response team said.

Tracing the case

According to the health officials, the team has been able to properly manage the case as they took serious note of the issue. Punia said, “The woman had travelled to Malaysia and Indonesia between February 20 and March 4. She contacted us on March 12, stating her mild symptoms. She was almost asymptomatic. Still, knowing her travel history, we took her sample for testing and it was later confirmed as positive.”

According to him, the health department was able to trace the case before the onset of actual symptoms. “Transmission, to an extent, has been prevented as all the family members have tested negative and employees in her office are under self-quarantine,” he said.

A senior state health official had confirmed on Monday that 70 employees were identified in her office in Sector 53. Of them, 32 are residents of Gurugram, 28 are from Delhi, nine from Uttar Pradesh and one from Faridabad. She said that Gurugram employees are already in self-quarantine at home and have remained asymptomatic till now.

Sample testing

The number of people visiting Civil Hospital in Sector 10 to enquire about the Covid-19 situation and sample testing has increased over the last two days. According to the doctors, at the sample collection lab, earlier only four to five people visited the help desk and only one to two samples were taken. However, in the last 48 hours, more than 22 people with travel histories to different countries have visited and seven samples have been collected.