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Hanoi considers extending quarantine time
  • | tienphong, dtinews.vn | April 07, 2020 08:54 PM
Hanoi’s chairman has proposed extending quarantine after some people were found positive for SARS-CoV-2 after 23 days.

  

Hanoi considers extending quarantine time


At a meeting on April 6, Hanoi Chairman Nguyen Duc Chung said during the second phase, Hanoi had reported the most number of positive cases. It also has the largest community spread. In many cases, the authorities have been unable to identify patient zero.

"For example, we can't find out who infected patient 237. The community spread rate is very high," Chung said, emphasising that residents must wear face masks and wash hands.

96 people were tested positive in the past month. However, the authorities have been able to control cases from outside. They are dealing with infections inside Bach Mai Hospital and community spread.

"Hanoi Centre for Disease Control had tested all passengers on the flight from Moscow to Vietnam. The result pointed to a patient from Ha Tinh who entered Vietnam on March 25 and was quarantined. His first test result was negative but was positive on the second test," Chung said.

A 47-year-old patient from Me Linh District tested positive SARS-CoV-2 on April 6 after going to Bach Mai Hospital in Hanoi on March 12. Chung said a patient in South Korea didn't show symptoms for 27 days. The longest incubation period observed in the US is 22.5 days and up to 39 days in Wuhan, China.

Chung proposed that ward authorities should extend the quarantine time. Those who had gone to Bach Mai Hospital or made some contacts with Patient 237 should be self-isolated until April 15-20. Those who have been released from quarantine areas should self-isolate for another 14 days.

"We are only having a few numbers of cases now. If the number of cases goes to the hundreds, we won't have the resources for thorough testing. We have to immediately and completely deal with every case now or else ward authorities may not be able to react in time," he said.

He asked citizens to follow social distancing rules to prevent the spread, warning that this is a long and arduous task.

"We have to prepare ourselves mentally and with good resources or else we'll lose quickly," he said.

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