Kochi: Ernakulam district is out of Nipah scare for the time being, but the authorities have urged the people to take precautions to avoid contracting the deadly disease.
The district administration on Thursday said it has arranged all the facilities to treat suspected cases, if any. The facilities to isolate suspected patients have been arranged at the Government Medical College Hospital, Ernakulam. Restrictions have been imposed on visitors at the hospital.
People who go to any hospital have been instructed to wear face masks. Healthcare workers have been given the training to handle suspected Nipah cases.
The preventive steps were discussed at a meeting of a core committee formed to control the spread of disease in the district. District Collector NSK Umesh chaired the meet.
The meeting was held in the wake of the Nipah outbreak in Kozhikode district. The authorities have urged those who visited Kozhikode district in the past 21 days and have symptoms of Nipah to seek medical treatment.
The incubation period from the time of a person contracting the virus to symptoms becoming evident is usually four to 14 days. In some cases, it could go up to 21 days. The symptoms include fever and headache, coughing and breathing difficulty.
As part of preventive measures, people have been instructed to wear face masks and clean hands using soap or sanitiser frequently. Those who have symptoms and those who tend to them should wear N95 masks. Fruits or other food items bitten by fruit bats should not be touched or eaten. Those who touch them should wash their hands using soap immediately.
The brain-damaging virus has killed two people and infected three others in Kozhikode district so far. On Wednesday, a 24-year-old health worker became Kerala's fifth confirmed Nipah case since its recent outbreak.
Disaster Management Wing deputy collector Usha Bindumol, Assistant Collector Nishanth Sihara, District Medical Officer in-charge Dr K K Asha, National Health Mission District Programme Manager Dr C Rohini, Kalamassery MCH Superintendent Dr M Ganesh Mohan and Principal Dr S Prathap attended the core meet.
