HYDERABAD: Students of Osmania Medical College were sent into a tizzy on Tuesday as five more PG doctors tested positive for Covid-19. The total tally in the medical college now stands at 12. The test results of nearly 58 PG students came negative on Tuesday, whereas reports of 116 students are still awaited, said senior officials.
“Nearly 280 students in the hospital will be tested. So far, 58 students have tested negative; further reports are awaited. We have advised all the students to wear PPE kits and masks while performing duties. A majority of those who had tested positive were from the Petlaburj Maternity Hospital,” said Dr Shashikala, Principal of Osmania Medical College.
What is more worrisome is the fact that despite the flare-up, the GHMC is in a fix on how to seal off the hostel. “As per protocol, a containment area must not see any thoroughfare. But since this is a students’ hostel, we are unsure on how to proceed,” said a senior official from the GHMC.
At this juncture, either the doctors, who aren’t performing duties at the moment, must be sent home or the hostel must be shut down. However, since the final year PG exams are round the corner, the students, who are not on duty, are at the hostel studying.
“As of now, the hostel management has not told us whether the students would be sent home. We are in discussion with them to see if it can be shut down. A decision will be taken on Wednesday to avoid further spread of the virus,” said the GHMC official.
Health Inspector tests positive
A Health Inspector from the Osmania General Hospital (OGH) tested positive for Covid-19 on Tuesday and has been shifted to Gandhi Hospital for treatment. He had returned from Mahbubnagar after Eid and had rejoined duty. A few days ago, he reported fever and cough and was tested for the virus. However, it still remains unclear if he contracted the virus in Mahbubnagar or got infected here in the city.
The development has effectively sent three more health inspectors of OGH into isolation. “The duty of the Health Inspector is to primarily assign duties to nurses and public health workers. The Covid-positive staffer has not come into contact with any patients,” said Dr B Nagendar, Superintendent of OGH. The hospital has also taken up a slew of measures to prevent exposure of the virus within its premises
Rattled junior docs submit demands
The Telangana Junior Doctors Association has submitted an eight-point demand list to the Director of Medical Education Dr K Ramesh Reddy in the wake of rising Covid cases among PG doctors. The first demand is to continue with the self-imposed quarantine roster system of duties for all healthcare workers. They have also asked for accommodation for these workers in hotels to ensure that their families don’t get infected
Obese Covid patient delivers baby through C-section
The obstetrics and gynaecology department of Gandhi Hospital pulled off yet another high-risk C-section on a 135-kg pregnant woman suffering from Covid-related pneumonia. The baby weighed 3 kg, and both the mother and child are recovering well, officials said. “The case is of significance because the mother had a condition of obesity.
Also, the Covid-related complications were high with her having a shadow on the lung due to pneumonia. However, the C- section was performed successfully. Both the mother and baby are safe,” an official said. This is the sixth such C-section performed on a Covid-19 pregnant woman. The child would be kept under observation in the NICU at the hospital