Meghalaya’s first COVID-19 patient has no travel history.
This was disclosed by the State Health Department on Tuesday.
Now the Health Department is contemplating the fact that the medical practitioner of Bethany Hospital in Shillong might have contracted the deadly coronavirus from his son-in-law.
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The son-in-law of the patient is a pilot with Air India.
According to a letter issued by the commissioner and secretary of Meghalaya Health Department to the secretary of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India, the pilot son-in-law of the COVID-19 patient had travelled from New York to New Delhi on March 16 last.
On March 17, he had travelled from Delhi to Imphal and went back to Delhi on March 20.
On March 24, he had again travelled from Delhi to Shillong.
He was placed under home quarantine after registering himself from March 24 to April 7 last.
The letter further stated that the state surveillance team visited the pilot during the quarantine period.
Meanwhile, the state Health Department has taken all containment measures after the senior staff from the Bethany Hospital tested COVID-19 positive at North Eastern Indira Gandhi Regional Institute of Health and Medical Sciences (NEIGRIHMS).
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The patient’s COVID-19 positive status was also confirmed by NIV, Pune.
Meanwhile, the state Health Department has begun contact tracking of the patient and had restricted movement of people within the vicinity as per containment protocol of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
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The letter further stated that since the patient is a healthcare professional, the State is establishing all primary and secondary contacts for preventing any further spread of the disease.