Hyderabad: According to the authorities more than 2,000 patients have gone missing. This was revealed when the government went about tracking them after corona testing in different city government hospitals.
Who is to be blamed? Is it the government’s negligence or the people’s fear?
The authorities claim that the contact numbers and given addresses by the suspected patients filling in the forms turned out to be fake.
Ever since the government rolled out home isolation kits for quarantined COVID-19 patients, the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) officials found that out hundreds have dodged authorities, mainly to avoid a social stigma.
“Every day staffers are unable to trace dozens of people whose names are included in the distribution list and are in home isolation after they tested positive in government-run facilities,” said Badhavath Santhosh, GHMC Additional Commissioner, Health Wing.
Several suspected patients have also shut their mobile phones. The GHMC Commissioner DS Lokesh Kumar also stated, “There is a danger with these people roaming the streets and denizens living in the vicinity not knowing anything. People should be more responsible.”
The officials said that despite having the Aadhar card address and phone numbers, tracing the patients is become very difficult. Meanwhile, many of them have denied giving them the isolation kit at their home.
The GHMC officials are trying different methods to reach out to these people. “We are rolling out an action plan to reach the people who are keeping their address confidential and not accepting the kits,” he added.