ROURKELA: The general outdoor patient department (OPD) of Rourkela Government Hospital (RGH) will remain closed for three days from Monday to Wednesday. The decision was taken after a host of healthcare givers of the hospital were found infected with COVID-19. RGH authorities on Sunday said the general OPD will be closed to prevent the virus spread as a large number of employees have been quarantined after contracting the virus.
While patients were advised to avoid routine OPD visits, non-essential elective surgeries have been postponed. However, emergency OPD rooms 1 and 4 and Flu Clinic will remain functional. Incidentally, 10 healthcare providers of RGH tested positive between July 4 and 9.
Besides, nine care givers of Hi-Tech COVID-19 hospital have also tested positive. The labour room of RGH has also been closed till Tuesday midnight after a woman tested positive post-delivery. The labour room is temporarily shifted to the Orthopaedic Ward.
On the day, eight more positive cases were detected in Sundargarh, taking the tally to 668 in the district. Collector Nikhil Pawan Kalyan informed that a Goa returnee of Bisra block, who is symptomatic, tested positive and five asymptomatic cases were reported from Hemgir and Lathikata blocks besides one in Sundargarh town.
They are direct contacts of previous positive cases. The rest two cases are from Rourkela which include a pregnant woman of Birijapali and an elderly woman of Traffic Gate. Meanwhile, residents of Koelnagar staged protest for several hours at Jhirpani police station demanding action against a COVID-19 patient for violating home quarantine norms.
The agitators said the patient, a woman, tested positive on July 9 and subsequently, put in home quarantine along with her husband. However, the couple was regularly going out and even a maid was visiting their house. The agitators withdrew their protest after the district administration shifted the patient to an institutional isolation centre.
Panchayats shut down by sarpanchs
ROURKELA: As many as eight sarpanchs in Panposh subdivision have imposed shutdowns in their respective panchayats to keep COVID-19 at bay. Nuagaon, Hathibari, Purunapani, Jhariatoli, Katepur, Kalunga, Chikatmati and Bondamunda are currently under shutdown.
Hathibari Sarpanch Binod Dehuri said the local weekly market and shops in the panchayat have been closed since last Thursday. Though Hathibari is yet to report any positive case, the preemptive decision was taken to protect villagers. Nuagaon samiti chairman Maklu Ekka said the panchayat has been shutdown since July 3 after 12 migrant workers lodged in the local temporary medical centre tested positive for coronavirus.