Covid-19: RT-PCR push for kin of serious patients in Kolkata – Times of India

KOLKATA: Samrat Sen, a resident of Jadavpur’s Sulekha and a banker on Monday registered his father-in-law’s name with Covid-admission cell of Swasthya Bhawan to shift the Covid-critical patient from a private hospital to a government Covid-designated hospital. On Tuesday, Sen got a call from the state health department inquiring whether the immediate family members of the critical patient had their Covid tests (RT-PCR) done? When Sen answered in the negative, the caller gave a 72-hour deadline for the Sen family and confirmed that if no tests were done within the timeframe, the state health department would send a team to their Jadavpur address for collection of swabs.
Sen said they would themselves get tested for Covid without waiting for the Swasthya Bhawan workers to do the job. “Right now I am busy with the treatment of my father-in-law. I shall arrange for an RT-PCR test for every single member of the family who has come in close contact with the patient,” Sen said.

According to the revised protocol, testing rules in community settings will be done for symptomatic patients who are close contacts of a confirmed positive case, asymptomatic contacts who are above 60 and those who have comorbidities, symptomatic pregnant women, asymtomatic pregnant women nearing labour if they are close contacts and those requiring international travel.
In cases where the tele-callers are finding either of these they are asking for a test report within 72 hours.
As part of contract tracing, the state health department and the KMC have decided to conduct a mandatory RT-PCR test on persons who are coming in close contact with a Covid positive patient.
The state health and KMC tele-callers who are engaged in contract tracing are giving a 72-hour deadline to the relatives of a Covid positive patient to get tested. Otherwise the state and the civic body are sending their own teams for collection of swabs.
According to a KMC health department official, the tele-callers have been asked to take the contract-tracing job seriously to prevent spread of the infection in the neighbourhoods where multiple addresses had or are still having Covid positive patients. The tele-callers have also been advised to take note of the fact whether adequate tests were being done to determine the presence of the infection in the residents of the high-rises and apartment buildings where more than four persons have been tested positive.
A KMC Covid combat team member said the stress for testing was laid more on the families where some Covid positive patients are suddenly turning critical. “We are keeping an eye on the Covid positive patients who despite having no co-morbidity factors are turning critical. In such cases, the family members must get tested,” the civic official said.