5 of the evacuees brought back from Wuhan in China and kept at a quarantine centre in Manesar are shifted to Army’s Base Hospital in Delhi after they develop symptoms of cough and cold.

Officials said the five were taken to hospital as a preventive measureas the coronavirus infection was yet to be confirmed. The samples of all five are sent for various tests to AIIMS and have received the test result of one person which is negative. The results of the other four are still awaited.

On Monday, after a third confirmed coronavirus case in Kerala, the government has declared the outbreak a “state-specific disaster”. This tag will help the government to allocate more funds for preventing spread of the disease, whereas police will also get additional powers to deal with the situation.

On Monday, a 19-year-old medical student, who returned from Wuhan, was tested positive for coronavirus in Kerala’s Kasaragod district. She had flown from Wuhan to Kolkata and took another flight to Kochi and then boarded a train to Kasaragod on January 27.

In a special task, the Indian government had evacuated more than 600 people, mostly students, from the novel coronavirus hit areas of China. They all are being accommodated at two quarantine facilities set up by the Army in Manesar — from here the five suspected cases were shifted to hospital — and by the ITBP in Chhawla Camp.

Sources from the Base hospital said that any of the evacuees who shows symptoms of the coronavirus infection will be isolated from the group and admitted to the hospital.

The Base hospital is the backbone for any disaster management operation in the country and has created a full-fledged isolation ward with capacity of nearly 100 beds that can be extended further as the need arises. Asenior doctor at Base hospital, who did not want to be quoted said that the only way to reduce the risk of spreading of the disease is by strictly screening people who are coming from affected areas. Any persons found positive for the viral infection has to be treated separately to reduce the further risk of transmission. This can be done at Army facility due to strict discipline followed there.

Virologists has said that coronavirus is like SARS and MERS – two other viral infections that have caused epidemics in the past in different countries. A senior virologist at AIIMS said that it is a novel virus and people are not immune to it. Hence, strict screening of persons coming from affected areas is the only way to control further spread. If the infection spreads in India, it will not be easy to tackle the transmission as coronavirus is a respiratory infection that can easily spread through air.

The World Health Organization has already declared the coronavirus outbreak a global public health emergency. It has recommended that the general public should frequently clean hands by using alcohol-based hand rub, or soap and water. Avoid close contact with anyone having cold, cough and fever. If anyone has fever, cough and difficulty in breathing, seek medical care immediately and share your previous travel history with your doctor.

Source: ET Healthworld