All positive patients in Nagaland retested after two weeks — Health official

Our Correspondent
Kohima, June 9 (EMN): Principal Director for Health and Family Welfare, Dr. Vizolie Z Suokhrie on Tuesday informed that all Covid-19 positive cases, whether asymptomatic or with mild symptoms, are retested after the 14th day of their first test.

Briefing journalists on Tuesday in Kohima, he said that the department has deviated from not only the Union Ministry’s guidelines on testing but also the discharge policy “because sometimes we have to take a call and see what will be the best for us”.

He stated that for positive cases with symptoms, they will follow the same ministry guidelines but will retest the asymptomatic, or patients with mild symptoms after 14 days of the first test.

“In our case, since positive cases have just come in, we want to know how it behaves; so we will see if it is really safe to send the people home after 14 days,” he said.

Suokhrie also informed that the returnees, after 14 days at facility quarantine, will be home quarantined for another 14 days under active surveillance, where they have to update regularly about their status, symptoms; and then after completion of 14 days only, they will be ‘freed from their radar’.

Different names at different points

According to the principal director, one problem the department faces while dealing with returnees is that they provide different names at different points: one name while booking tickets and another when they reach quarantine centres.

He shared that the department personnel are confronted with issues ranging from four or five returnees sharing the same phone to ‘many of them having sim cards but not owning cellphones’. These are some management problems, the doctor said.

Dr. Kikameren Longkumer, Deputy Director for Health and Family Welfare, also requested the returnees to be honest and provide their ‘true identity’. He assured that their identity would be protected and kept confidential.

“Normally, humans are bound to make mistakes, but working under pressure and inmates giving 2-3 different names, it is compounding our work,” he shared and requested the inmates, returnees and patients to provide their real identity.

Managing positive cases

In the case of managing positive cases, there are two categories: asymptomatic and symptomatic, and no treatment is required for asymptomatic or mild symptom cases, said the deputy director.

He said that 80% of the cases are asymptomatic or with mild symptoms; and for them, no treatment is required. The only thing is that they have to live a positive life and a hygienic lifestyle, Longkumer added.

According to the doctor, the only difference between a quarantine centre and Covid care centre is that in a quarantine centre, social distancing needs to be maintained.

“A quarantine centre can be easily converted into a Covid care centre, as the only thing is that the people and the care giverss have to upgrade their PPE”, he commented.

In the case of severe or critical cases, he said that the patients will be managed depending on the symptoms.

There is no specific treatment or medicine for Covid-19, he said, explaining that if they have high fever, then, paracetamol will be given; or if they are suffering from diarrhoera, that specific medicine will be given; if they are having breathing problems then they will be given oxygen; and if it is critical, then, they will be provided with ventilators.

“If an asymptomatic person have recovered, that means the immune system has overcome the virus and the immune system has won the war,” he said.