Bhubaneswar: The first Swine Flu casualty of the year was reported Saturday with the death of a person at a private hospital here even as the state health department officials claimed that it is fully prepared to tackle the situation in state.
As per official sources, a 53-year-old man admitted to a private hospital in the city succumbed to the disease while undergoing treatment.
Of the 174 samples tested so far, 32 have been found positive. The patients afflicted with H1N1 virus are undergoing treatment in various hospitals in the Capital city. Eight of 20 persons examined Saturday have tested positive.
Health and Family Welfare Minister Pratap Jena, who reviewed the department’s efforts in the evening, said “We have asked all the government and private hospitals to open isolation wards in their hospitals for the treatment of swine-flu afflicted persons. The government has been providing medicines free of cost to the patients.”
Urging the people not to panic over the development, the minister said several programmes have been undertaken to create awareness about the killer disease. “If the symptoms of the H1N1 virus are found in any person, he/she should immediately send the blood samples for testing free-of-cost,” he added.
The state government has already issued special guidelines to various hospitals to tackle swine-flu cases. The health department has also issued do’s and don’ts for the public and increased awareness drive to prevent the spread of influenza, the sources said.
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