In Kolkata, Chinese globetrotter admitted in hospital; kept under watch

The Chinese woman had fever and complained of headache. Doctors at the ID Hospital said they did not find the typical signs of the infection.

A 28-year-old Chinese globetrotter has been admitted in the government-run Infectious Diseases (ID) Hospital in Kolkata on Sunday after doctors at a private hospital, where she first went, suspected it to be a case of the deadly Coronavirus infection that had killed at least 80 people in China till Sunday night.

Hospital authorities said that Huamin had come to India from Madagascar on January 24. She fell ill and got admitted in a private hospital in east Kolkata. Since she was suffering from fever and headache, the doctors sent her to the ID Hospital on Sunday night. (Image used for representation).(FILE PHOTO.)

The Chinese woman had fever and complained of headache. Doctors at the ID Hospital said they did not find the typical signs of the infection.

With no interpreter around, ID Hospital authorities had a tough time understanding her. The woman identified herself as Jua Humin, a globetrotter from China, doctors said.

She has been kept under observation at the isolation ward of the ID Hospital.

The ID Hospital is the only referral hospital for such cases in south Bengal. Hospital authorities are in touch with their counterparts at the National Institute of Virology (NIV) in Pune.

“The symptoms, which she is showing, do not match with the classical symptoms of the Coronavirus. We are in touch with NIV. She has been kept under watch in the hospital’s isolation ward since Sunday,” said Asish Manna, acting medical superintendent and vice principal of ID Hospital.

Hospital authorities said that Huamin had come to India from Madagascar on January 24. She fell ill and got admitted in a private hospital in east Kolkata. Since she was suffering from fever and headache, the doctors sent her to the ID Hospital on Sunday night.

Senior officials of the state health department rushed to inquire about the patient’s condition and the hospital’s infrastructure.

This is the second time that people have rushed to the ID Hospital suspecting a Coronavirus infection.

Last week, a woman named Rajashree Basu, went to the hospital and had to be kept under watch at the isolation ward for a few hours after she returned from China and complained of diarrhea.

The woman is a school teacher in Yuxi city in China’s Yunan province. She was, however, released after doctors confirmed that it was not a case of Coronavirus infection.

Meanwhile, a 32-year-old Thai woman, Surin Naktoy, died in a private hospital in south Kolkata on Monday. According to hospital authorities she was admitted on January 21.

“Since she was a foreign national and was suffering from respiratory problems we have informed the health department. We have also sent swab samples to the health department. The Thai consulate has also been informed,” said a senior official of the hospital.