Even as health authorities in Mysuru gear up for a major awareness campaign on the 2019 Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) scare, efforts are being made to get in touch with those who return from China following a holiday or a business trip as a preventive measure.
The authorities may bank on travel and tour operators here for information on those who had gone to China and returned to the city or place in the district either in December or January. The move comes close on the heels of the University of Mysore asking Chinese students who study on campus and are currently on vacation in China, not to return to the city amid a global concern over the coronavirus outbreak.
“The people who returned from China will be subjected to a usual medical examination as a precautionary measure since the outbreak emerged from China. If such persons have symptoms like cold, cough, throat infection, pain and other flu-like symptoms, they need to undergo the screening and symptomatic treatment,” sources in the Health Department said on Friday.
Deputy Commissioner Abhiram G. Sankar on Friday collected details from senior health officials on the steps taken by the department in the wake of the virus scare.
Meanwhile, the department has asked private hospitals to set aside a bed in their ICUs for the isolation of suspected patients. This is in addition to the quarantine ward with five beds. The hospitals had also been asked to screen the patients as per the guidelines issued by the Health Ministry and inform the department. A ward was ready at K.R. Hospital, that is attached to the Mysore Medical College and Research Institute.
Kiosks will be set up at major tourist destinations such as the Mysuru palace and zoo and health workers posted there will educate the public on the disease besides distributing the information on dos and don’ts. Medical officers and the staff were also being briefed about the outbreak to educate the community at their levels in their respective areas.
The National Institute of Virology in Pune is the authorised laboratory to test for 2019-nCoV and samples collected from the patients, if any, are sent here for tests. “The samples had to be sent through the department and the lab results may take four to five days,” the sources add.
“Those with flu-like symptoms were supposed to take symptomatic treatment to ensure their condition doesn’t worsen. The patients need to tell doctors if they have travelled abroad. There is no need to panic since necessary screening measures are in place,” a senior health official said.
