Kathmandu, April 16

Patients requiring surgery at National Trauma Centre were being tested for coronavirus beginning today.

The hospital has decided to test virus antibodies among trauma patients using rapid diagnostic test. However, the samples of those trauma cases who have returned from foreign countries or are in close contact with those who have come from foreign countries, will be tested using polymerase chain reaction method. Their samples will be sent to the laboratory in Bir Hospital for PCR test.

The trauma centre has received 500 RDTs from the Ministry of Health and Population to conduct rapid tests on patients.

“We have decided to test patients to prevent COVID-19 infection to health workers, as well as to other patients undergoing treatment at the hospital,” said hospital Director Santosh Paudel.

The hospital normally admits about 12 patients per day. Trauma surgeries, including surgeries of burn victims, plastic surgeries and spine surgeries are carried out daily in the hospital.

The hospital today resumed its OPD services to allow patients discharged after surgery recently to seek follow-up treatment. Earlier, patients had been seeking service from its emergency ward and from doctors who were available on hotline numbers.

Meanwhile, 32 patients visited the hospital’s OPD for their follow up treatment today.

Trauma patients need to seek follow-up treatment for dressing wounds, cutting plasters and many other such services. Paudel said the hospital resumed the OPD mainly to reduce crowd in the emergency room as many patients requiring follow-up service were visiting emergency rooms due to closure of OPD service.

A version of this article appears in e-paper on April 17, 2020, of The Himalayan Times.