NE India’s first Covid-19 patient discharged from hospital

Dimapur, April 12 (EMN): In a major achievement for the medical department as well a huge relief for the public, the first person in Northeast India to test positive for the Covid-19 has been discharged from the hospital, days after she was declared coronavirus-free.

The 23-year-old woman from Manipur had been undergoing treatment at the Jawaharlal Nehru Institute of Medical Sciences (JNIMS) in Imphal since March 23.

The chief minister of Manipur, N Biren Singh, took to social media on Sunday to announce the discharge of the first Covid-19 patient from the Northeast. He thanked God, doctors and nurses at JNIMS for the achievement. “Let’s stay safe, let’s stay at Home,” he urged the public.

A bulletin from Professor Th Bhimo Singh, director of JNIMS, stated that the patient was discharged on April 12 after a meeting of JNIMS Covid treatment core committee with IDSP team of the government of Manipur on the same day at A-Block of the health facility.

According to the communiqué, the woman was discharged under the following conditions:

• She will be under home quarantine for 14 days with effect from the day of discharge.
• She will be tested after 14 days again.
• The home quarantine guidelines of MOHFW will be handed over to her parents.
• IDSP team led by Dr. Tomcha Khuman, state surveillance officer, also counselled the parents and handed over a copy of "Guidelines of Home Quarantine", government of India, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, director general of health services to the parent (father) with detailed explanation along with their phone numbers.

It may be mentioned that the Manipuri woman, who had returned from the United Kingdom on March 21, was tested for the novel coronavirus at JNIMS on March 23 and the result, which was declared the following day, came out positive. She had been undergoing treatment in the health facility since.

Manipur Health and Family Welfare Minister Langpoklakpam Jayantakumar Singh announced on April 6 that her final Covid-19 test report had come out negative and that she was completely free of the virus.