Newborn, relatives of a woman who died of COVID-19 tested negative for the virus

Swab reports of a newborn child and relatives of a woman who died of coronavirus infection at Dhulikhel Hospital have come negative for the virus. The 29-year-old newly mother of Barhabise municipality-9, Ramche in Sindhupalchowk district died on Thursday while undergoing treatment at the hospital.

She was tested positive for the infection. Swabs of the deceased’s 13-day-old newborn, her husband, mother and sister were tested through PCR tests, said Chief of the District Health Office, Dr Narendra Jha. They were kept in isolation after collecting their swabs on Saturday, he said. Preparations were underway to quarantine them for 14 days in coordination with the district administration office, he said.

On Saturday evening, the Ministry of Health and Population confirmed that the woman died from the virus. Doctors and health workers and staffs who attended to the deceased have been quarantined after collecting their swabs, said the hospital’s spokesperson Dr Suman Raj Tamrakar. The hospital has been put on high alert following the findings of the death of the woman from the virus, he said.

Meanwhile, NC central member and former Minister for Information and Communications Mohan Bahadur Basnet has announced financial assistances worth Rs 50,000 to the care of the newborn of the woman who died on Thursday from COVID-19.

The amount would be handed to the child’s father after he finishes his stay in quarantine, he said. He also pledged his initiatives to help manage financial assistances for the education and job security of the child.