Omicron: Beliaghata ID Hosp sets up separate unit with 50 beds
Kolkata: In the wake of Omicron scare and also as a precautionary measure against it, the Beliaghata ID Hospital has opened a separate unit with 50 beds following the instruction from the state health department.
A day after an 18-year-old girl, an UK returnee tested positive for Covid following her arrival at Calcutta airport, another person who had returned from Bangladesh and a resident of Barasat in North 24-Parganas was admitted to the Belighata ID Hospital after testing positive for Covid. Samples of both the patients were sent for genome sequencing to confirm whether they are affected with Omicron variant of Covid.
The first patient has been admitted to a private hospital in South Kolkata. Family members of both the Covid infected foreign returnee have been asked to stay in home isolation. Health department will carry out contract tracing so that the people who have come across the patients can be identified and sent to isolation.
Two people have so far tested positive for Covid soon after their arrival from foreign countries which have already been demarcated as 'At Risk' countries by the World Health Organisation.
Omicron cases have been reported in UK and Bangladesh from where these two infected patients have come. According to state health department sources, it would take around 7 days to get the report of genome sequencing from the National Institute of Biomedical Genomics in Kalyani. Beliaghata ID has opened a separate unit to accommodate if there are any Omicron infected patients found in the city. Out of 50 beds arranged by the Beliaghata ID Hospital, around 25 would be reserved for men and the rest 25 for women patients. Expert doctors have been deployed at the unit.
Covid infected patients from 'At Risk' countries will have to be kept in hospital isolation till their genome sequencing reports arrive. State health department has already directed the private hospitals in Kolkata where the UK returnee was taken, to comply with all the Covid norms and the conditions set by the government.
The private hospital had to obtain permission from the state health department to admit the Omicron suspect. Bengal has not so far reported any Omicron positive case so far.
