Health Minister Veena George requested that people who were present at the locations during the specified times contact the control room.
Published Jul 21, 2024 | 9:52 AM ⚊ Updated Jul 21, 2024 | 9:52 AM
Nipah confirmed in Kerala.
The Kerala government on Sunday, 21 July, released the route map of a 14-year-old patient who tested positive for zoonotic Nipah virus (NiV) in Pandikkad in the Malappuram district.
State Health Minister Veena George requested that people who were present at the locations during the specified times contact the control room.
The child, a resident of Pandikkad, was initially treated at a private hospital in the neighbouring Kozhikode district.
He was later shifted to the Medical College Hospital in Kozhikode following his parents’ request. Labs in Kozhikode and Pune confirmed the presence of the virus in samples taken from the patient, reports said.
According to a statement from the Health Minister’s office, actions would be coordinated according to the SOP formulated as per the government order regarding Nipah prevention.
On 11 July at 6.50 am, the boy left his house in the Chembrasseri area in Pandikkad of the Malappuram district and took the ‘CPB’ bus to reach the Bright Tuition Centre in Pandikkad by 7.18 am.
On 12 July, he was at Dr Vijayan’s Clinic from 8 am to 8.30 am.
The next day, on 13 July, he consulted at the Paediatric OP of PKM Hospital between 7 and 7.30 am.
On 15 July, the boy was in the Emergency and OP ward of PKM Hospital from 8.30 am to 8 pm and was later admitted to the Emergency ICU of Moulana Hospital at 8.30 pm
The government has been tracking the people who have visited the following locations from 11 to 15 July.
There are 214 people on the primary contact list. 60 people are in the high-risk category. Thirty isolation rooms have been arranged at Government Medical College Hospital in Malappuram.
Additionally, necessary isolation wards have been set up at Government Medical College Hospital in Kozhikode.
Minister George requested people who were in those places at that time to contact the control room.
All samples from the high-risk category would be tested. Those with Nipah symptoms have been advised to contact the control room.
Symptoms include fever, headache, fatigue, sore throat, cough, shortness of breath, and difficulty breathing.
If respiratory symptoms are present, the risk of transmission to others is higher.
Nipah’s uniqueness is that symptoms worsen over time, and transmission risk increases as severity increases.
It has also been directed to avoid unnecessary hospital visits.
“Those on the contact list should be in isolation. Even if only one person in a household is on the contact list, they should not interact with others. There is no need to panic. Those experiencing any kind of tension should kindly contact the control room,” George said.
The control room would also assist in improving mental health.
The state government also opened control rooms in the wake of detecting Nipah.
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