Doctor detected with Covid-19 in Eastern Railway hospital in Kolkata

Kolkata, April 22 (IANS) A doctor of Eastern Railway’s B.R. Singh Hospital here has tested positive for the coronavirus infection, triggering panic and prompting the authorities to undertake emergency measures for preventing any spread of the virus.

The doctor, attached to the emergency unit, was tested after she felt unwell. The test results received on Tuesday night detected the presence of the virus, an Eastern Railway spokesman told IANS.

“Our medical directors and other officials are there assessing the situation. They will do everything as per the relevant guideline,” he said.

Sources said the apprehensions among the hospital staffers have increased manifold as the doctor had been attending to patients in the emergency unit after putting on Personal Protection Equipment.

The doctor was being admitted in a private hospital close to the Eastern Metropolitan Bypass in the city’s southern outskirts.

The authorities were assessing who all came in contact with the victim when she last attended office.

“Arrangements are being made to sanitise the emergency ward. The departmental in-charges are preparing to take all precautionary measures as per guideline,” the spokesman said.

Asked about complaint that doctors, nurses and other health workers in all wards other than the emergency unit and the ITU were in “absolutely vulnerable condition” in the absence of personal protection equipment, the spokesman said the hospital had sufficient number of protective gear.

He also denied that the PPEs were being kept in reserve and not being handed out to frontline medical personnel in most of the departments.

“We don’t have any such information. Everybody is working with all alertness and precautions,” he said.

–IANS

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