CHENNAI: A mentally disturbed COVID-19 positive patient who was under treatment at the Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital managed to sneak out of the hospital on Monday night. However, Chennai Corporation officials with the help of the police managed to take him back to the hospital after being alerted by his neighbours.
According to official sources, he managed to walk out of the hospital without anybody noticing and reached his home in Pullianthope on foot.
It was after much effort that the officials managed to convince the patient to go back to the hospital.
"On Monday evening we reached his house in Pulianthope and tried to convince him to come with us. He was adamant that he will not come out of the house. Later we came to know that he was mentally disturbed. His daughter lives three houses away in the same locality. He was not convinced even after his daughter spoke to him. So we locked the house from outside and had a constable guard it," said C Jayasingh, the Assistant Commissioner of Police (Pulianthope).
On Tuesday morning, four policemen - one Sub Inspector and three constables - wearing protective gear on the instructions of health department officials entered the house and convinced the man to come to the hospital.
While the four policemen drove the man to the hospital, the Assistant Commissioner and Deputy Commissioner of Police trailed the vehicle at some distance until they reached the hospital.
The police officers said it was a different experience for them, quite unlike nabbing a crime suspect.