In Wayanad, a government doctor who had requested for leave to self-quarantine has instead, been appointed in the specially designated COVID-19 hospital in Mananthavady.
The 55-year-old gynaecologist's son, an engineering student, had traveled from Bengaluru to Wayanad on Tuesday, March 24. On the same day, the senior doctor had accompanied his son to the Mananthavady district hospital, where the latter had been advised to test himself for SARS-COV2, which causes the COVID-19 disease.
Following this, the senior doctor submitted a leave application, addressed to the Superintendent of the Mananthavady district hospital, to quarantine himself for a few days.
"The consultant physician on duty advised for throat swab (testing) for confirmation of corona (for my son).Since I have contact with him (my son), I prefer to take leave and stay home until his result comes. So kindly grant me eligible leave for a few days until the result comes," the doctor's letter, which was released by Mathrubhumi News, read.
However, a controversy erupted when, in the following days, the District Medical Officer (DMO) not only rejected the doctor's leave application, but also appointed him as Quality and Infection Controlling Activities and COVID-19 nodal office in Wayanad. The doctor was transferred from Vythiri hospital to the Wayanad district hospital in Mananthavady, which has been specifically set aside for COVID-19 patients.
TNM spoke to R Renuka, the DMO of Wayanad, who claims that it was the hospital Superintendent who denied leave to the 55-year-old doctor.
She also claimed that the doctor had requested for leave not to self-quarantine, but to take his wife and son from Mananthavady back to their home town of Thamarassery in Kozhikode in order to avoid exposure to the virus. The letter telecast by various channels however shows otherwise.
"The Superintendent had told the doctor that there was no necessity for him to be quarantined. The doctor has now agreed to take charge as the nodal officer in Mananthavady. I do not know how the letter was leaked or who gave it to the media," she told TNM, adding that she had not seen the letter herself.
The DMO also said that as a senior gynaecologist, the 55-year-old doctor was needed in the Wayanad district hospital in Mananthavady, particularly if antenatal COVID-19 cases (pregnant women with coronavirus) was reported in the district.
On Thursday, Wayanad reported its first positive case of coronavirus when a 48-year-old man from Thondarnad who had recently traveled to Dubai had tested positive.