Chandigarh allows home isolation till test result

Naina Mishra
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, July 28

Now, suspected patients going for the Covid-19 test in the city laboratories will not be mandatorily isolated in the hospital as the UT Administration has changed the protocol for such cases. The revised protocol is aimed at ramping up testing in the city.

UT Health Secretary Arun Gupta said, “As the number of cases is rising, we have decided to let patients choose home isolation after the Covid test rather than isolating them in a hospital.”

Under the previous practice, those undergoing the Covid test were admitted to the hospital and were isolated in the communicable disease ward until their reports came. The process took at least one day and hence, slowed down the testing capacity of the UT.

Mohali, on the other hand, was sending patients home after taking their samples. This also resulted in increased testing in Mohali as compared to Chandigarh. Testing in Chandigarh also slowed down due to the limited number of isolation beds in hospitals for suspected Covid patients.

In the contingency plan, the UT Administration had talked about ramping up the sampling facilities in case of peak infection (3,000 cases) in the city.

The UT had decided that in the case of peak infection, sampling facility would have isolation beds, preferably independent rooms, for about 12 hours between collection of the sample and receipt of the testing report.

Under the new protocol, the examinee opting for home isolation will have to give an undertaking that he or she has space for isolating self at home.