Is the State government’s practice of isolation and quarantine among the reasons for the fast spread of COVID 19?
This is the question being debated among doctors and officials in Belagavi district.
As per standard practice, the government is placing all primary contacts in a single hall till the end of the quarantine period.
Their throat swabs are collected every 12 days and tested. If anyone tests positive, he is removed to a different isolation ward. Alternatively, if any of the inmates develops symptoms related to coronavirus infection, he is placed in isolation and tested for the presence of the virus.
Relatives of affected patients fear that this practice is flawed and could spread the virus from those affected to non-affected.
“The government is tracing all primary contacts and secondary contacts of all positive cases. Then, it is putting all suspected cases in the same hall. We suspect that this is leading to a situation where even the non-positive cases are becoming positive,” said Mohmmad Naqui Abbas, whose relative has been quarantined for being a primary contact of a positive person.
Some doctors too have expressed concern over this practice.
“Let us take the case of the patient from Sankeshwar. He tested negative twice in 14 days. But his third test proved to be positive. This raises suspicion that he developed the infection in the quarantine hall, said a doctor who has been working with the district administration in COVID-19 management.
The district administration is working without a proper plan, say some doctors.
“Last week, the district administration officers told us they would bring 10 suspected cases for quarantine in the district designated hospital. We had made arrangements and the shift staff went home. But in the middle of the night, the officers brought 30 cases. We had to rearrange some beds and accommodate 15 each in two halls,” said another doctor.
A para-medical worker complained that the district administration officers had asked her to stay in a lodge in which some suspected cases were accommodated.
“I refused to do that as I didn’t want to be exposed to infection. We are using personal protection equipment (PPE) and other kits in the hospital. But in the hotel, there is no such thing. That is why, I have shifted to a friend’s house which was vacant,” she said.
PPE kits
Other doctors who spoke to The Hindu also complained about the inadequate number of PPE kits and a lower number of ventilators.
Officers say that they are following the recommended protocol but, at the same time, express helplessness over the lack of infrastructure and resources.
“We are forced to keep all primary contacts or secondary contacts in the same hall. We cannot put one person in an individual room. We have over 2,040 persons under observation in the district. Of these, only 326 are quarantined at home. The rest are all in institutional quarantine in government schools and private hotels and lodges. Over 700 have completed 14 days in quarantine and 960 have completed 28 days in quarantine. We have sent 749 samples for tests of which 534 came negative and 42 tested positive. As you can see the numbers we are handling are huge. We are trying to quarantine them in private hotels, but such efforts have faced strong resistance from local residents. That is why we are forced to keep the people under observation in single halls, albeit in different buildings,” said a senior officer who is a member of the district COVID-19 management committee.
“When we put them in a single hall, the social distancing of six feet is maintained between two beds. We can’t put barricades between the beds. It is the responsibility of inmates to maintain the necessary distance. But if they mingle, sit on the same bed or sit near each other and chat, they cannot blame us,” the officer said.
Deputy Commissioner S.B. Bommanahalli has defended the practice. “We are following the State-mandated protocol. This is what is followed in all districts,” he said. “We are ordering more PPE kits and ventilators,” he said.
