Four patients with coronavirus like symptoms quarantined at SKIMS

Srinagar, Mar 4: Four patients with coronavirus-like symptoms have been quarantined at Sher-e-Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences (SKIMS) on Wednesday.

In-charge Medical Superintendent of SKIMS, Ghulam Hassan Yattoo said four quarantined male patients who reported to the hospital, had traveled from Thailand, Iran, and China.

Out of the four patients, two have been tested negative and the blood samples of the two others have been sent to National Institute of Virology, Pune.

Sources said that all the four patients are stable and under constant monitoring.

Jammu and Kashmir has stepped up preparedness in order to identify the symptoms and deal promptly with the emerging infection of coronavirus.

Although no positive cases of coronavirus have been reported in Kashmir, health officials said all hospitals should ensure their staff is trained, and well-prepared to deal with the virus.

The government has been issuing advisories to inform people of the precautionary measures and symptoms associated with coronavirus.

Additional trained staff has been deployed for screening at the Srinagar Airport and an isolation center has been set-up at Sanat Nagar so that suspected cases are directly taken to the facility instead of tertiary care center.

Financial Commissioner of Health and Medical Education Department Atal Dullo said there is no need to create a panic like situation. “We have not issued any separate instructions to school or college authorities on measures related to coronavirus. If the parents or school authorities find any symptoms, they can directly report to health authorities”, he said.

Earlier, he had told The Kashmir Monitor that there is less awareness among the hospital staffers on how to deal with the emerging infection.

“Therefore, we have decided to train our medicos in quarantine protocols, and practices needed to promptly identify and isolate patients, with possible coronavirus, and inform health authorities in time,” Dullo said.

Coronavirus is a type of virus that typically affects the respiratory tracts of birds and mammals, including humans. The virus first surfaced in Wuhan in December 2019 but has since spread to different countries including India.