Kerala: Panic grips medical community after Medical Representative visiting hospitals, doctors tests COVID positive

Thiruvananthapuram: A sense of panic gripped the medical community here, after a pharmaceutical representative visiting various hospitals and doctors in the area and meeting a number of people including healthcare professionals as a part of his job tested positive for coronavirus. 

The 27-year-old medical representative belonging to a prominent pharmaceutical company and visiting a number of doctors and hospitals in the area of Thiruvananthapuram and around was later diagnosed as COVID-19 positive. Contact tracing and precautions are now being implemented with all those medical professionals including doctors and hospitals, he has come in contact with.

The issue was also mentioned by the state Tourism Minister Kadakampally Surendran in his recent briefing wherein he said that not everyone has a travel history and some of them have contacted a lot of people. This is to say that there might be a local transmission happening in the state. 

"Yesterday a Zomato online delivery boy and a medical representative and his father from Poonthura, a coastal area also tested positive. All these people don't have any travel history and some of them have contacted a lot of people," he said. The minister also informed that Thiruvananthapuram corporation has tightened restrictions in the city and people should not go outside unnecessarily. "There are warning from the World Health Organisation (WHO) that the month of August is crucial," said Surendran as quoted by ANI.

The 27-year-old medical representative, from within the City Corporation limits, tested positive had on Saturday. He had visited a few hospitals in suburban Kazhakoottam, and another near the city region. 

Citing the example of the positive cases like the one mentioned above, the Minister stressed on the need for stringent action to combat the COVID-19 situation in Thiruvananthapuram as more and more cases are emerging in the city.

With the proximity of the case of medical representatives visiting a number of hospitals and the doctors; and the rising number of cases, it is indeed both ways since it is still not clear, how the young MR contracted the virus 

Commenting on the same and highlighting that there exists a definite risk, Dr Gopikumar P. State Secretary, IMA Kerala told Medical Dialogues team , " Actually visiting a hospital is very risky now whatever may be the reason. This is a high-risk area, therefore going to the hospital unless it is very necessary is risky. But the main thing is to take the necessary precautions as mentioned in the guidelines by the World Health Organisation (WHO) and other Ministries

Presently, the number of Covid-19 cases in Kerala is 5,622. In his recent press release, K K Shailaja, Health Minister mentioned that the state witnessed the highest single-day surge so far as the COVID-19 tally breached the 5,000 marks on Saturday with 240 fresh cases being reported. Of the positive cases, 152 had come from abroad and 52 from other states.