Cuttack/Kendrapara/ Malkangiri: After a person tested positive for COVID-19 at the SCB Medical College and Hospital Wednesday in Cuttack, authorities have suspended the Out Patient Department (OPD) service till further notice. Restrictions have been imposed on the entry of patients into the hospital. Only emergency cases are being allowed to enter the hospital premises.
Similarly, the Malkangiri district administration has suspended OPD services at the District Headquarters Hospital (DHH) after the detection of a COVID-19 positive case. The District Medical Officer/ Superintendent of Malkangiri DHH has sent letter to all medical officers, In-Charge of CHCs, and SDMOs of Mathili and Chitrakonda. He has requested them not to refer patients to the hospital.
“It is to inform you that as per the direction of the Collector and DM, Malkangiri, the OPD and IPD of DHH Malkangiri have been sealed due to detection of COVID-19 positive cases in DHH Malkangiri. So you are directed to send referral patients judiciously to higher institution directly as DHH Malkangiri have been sealed,” read the letter.
The Kendrapara district administration has also sealed two private nursing homes for allegedly violating COVID-19 guidelines.
Acting on a tip-off a joint squad of health department and district administration conducted a raid on four private hospitals and found two of them were was violating several COVID-19 guidelines including mandatory usage of masks and enforcement of social distancing.
The officials also slapped Rs 1 lakh fine on the owners of the nursing homes as they found staff were not following established protocols for COVID-19 issued by the state government.
PNN