Kerala Health Minister Veena George said Monday that eleven contacts of a 12-year-old boy who succumbed to the Nipah virus were displaying symptoms, but that every one were stable for now. She said eight samples out of those were expected by late Monday night, which samples of the opposite three may be tested at the Medical College in Kozhikode.
The contact list prepared has 251 people, 125 out of whom are healthcare workers, George said, adding that 54 out of those were within the high-risk category. Thirty people from the list of 54 are healthcare workers, she added.
Thirty-eight people are isolated within the hospital for now, she said.
The Health Minister said the child’s mother’s fever had slightly reduced, adding that the farming team had inspected the house and premises.
“In their plot there are two rambutan trees and bats wont to come here. Samples from here are collected. they need also found a habitat of bats across the lake. There are two goats within the house, samples are collected from them too,” George said.
The state Health Minister said that NIV team from Bhopal would reach the premises on Wednesday to gather samples, adding that the Kerala Health Department will start house-to-house surveillance from Tuesday to see if anyone aside from the patient’s contacts have developed Nipah symptoms.
Meanwhile, Union Minister V Muraleedharan said he had held a discussion with concerned officials within the Ministry of Health on the Nipah situation in Kerala. “They said that they’re keeping an in depth watch on things and that they don’t think that true is out of control or alarming,” he said.
The Kerala government on Monday issued a Nipah management plan listing the health protocol to be followed by government and personal hospitals. George in a very statement said district authorities can prepare a separate management plan for Nipah and also informed that the treatment and discharge guidelines were also published.
She asked all districts authorities to stay cautious and to stay under observation people who are full of encephalitis. “The prime objective is surveillance, testing and treatment of the patients. As a part of surveillance, effective contact tracing and quarantine are going to be done. Treatment protocol are strictly followed and it’ll be constantly monitored,” the minister said in a very release.
The Nipah management plan are coordinated at the state, district and hospital levels. The State Committee consists of the Chief Minister, Health Minister, cabinet minister, Health Secretary, Disaster Management Additional cabinet minister, Director of the Department of Health and therefore the Director of Department of Health Education, the discharge said. She said that healthcare workers, field workers, doctors and other staff of personal hospitals, et al are given special training.
The minister also monitored the functioning of the Nipah room at the Kozhikode guest house.
