One more int’l passenger tests +ve; no cases of Omicron so far: Ma Su

CHENNAI: One more international passenger tested positive for COVID-19 in Tamil Nadu, taking the total number of international passengers who tested positive for COVID-19 after the Omicron variant surfaced to 30. The passenger was tested positive upon arrival from UAE at Chennai international airport.

So far, 10,713 people have been tested from high-risk countries and 54,068 individuals from low-risk countries. Among those coming from high-risk countries, 15 of them have tested positive for COVID-19, including three from Singapore, nine from the UK, two from Sweden and one from Ukraine. Upon retesting, eight passengers from Singapore tested positive.

From ‘non-risk’ countries, seven of them tested positive, including two from the US, one each from Colombo and Nigeria, and three from the UAE.

Currently, 25 patients are under treatment and five have been discharged. A total of 14 patients are undergoing treatment in King’s Institute, Guindy, four at Mahatma Gandhi Government Hospital in Tiruchy, two patients in private hospitals in Chennai, and one each in Nagercoil GH and Coimbatore GH. Three others are in private facilities in Nagercoil, Bengaluru and Dindigul.

Health Minister Ma Subramanian said so far, no case of Omicron has been reported in Tamil Nadu and the results of four more patients revealed the presence of Delta variant.

He inaugurated several medical centres at Omandurar GH including Cognitive development for the elderly and the mentally ill, Cognitive Rehabilitation Day Care

Centre, Internet De-addiction Centre, Special counselling centre for postpartum depression, Newborn Hearing Special Screening, and Emergency Psychiatric Emergency Care and Rehabilitation Centre. The Minister said these centres will be opened in all government medical college hospitals and will offer complete care for the elderly, those affected with mental disorders and the homeless.

“As the use of Internet has increased, e-commerce, social media, gambling, online dating and others have become addictive and psychiatric counselling shall be given to recover from the same. The screening of newborns for hearing disability and post-partum depression counselling shall be given at all hospitals,” he said.