Jalandhar, March 18: On the directives of Deputy Commissioner Ghanshyam Thori, the health department has issued a show-cause notice to Lal Path Lab for delay in the reporting of positive Covid-19 patients.
The show cause notice was issued to nodal officer of the Lab, Pardeep Kumar, who was responsible for sending real-time information of positive patients to district administration. As per the notice, Mr. Pardeep was asked to furnish a written reply to Civil Surgeon Office within two days failing which the matter would be referred to higher authorities for further action.
The notice issued by the Civil Surgeon Dr. Balwant Singh stated that the delay on the part of the lab in reporting the cases subsequently caused trouble in the procedure of home isolation of positive patients which is a serious matter of concern for the department.
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Civil Surgeon Dr. Balwant Singh further said this sort of callous approach is duly unwarranted and stern action would be taken against the erring institutions as the reporting's timing is of paramount importance when it comes to stem the virus spread. He further added that the officials were asked to conduct checking in all the private labs offering Covid-19 testing so that a real-time reporting of positive cases could be ensured besides the implementation of other government protocols.
In another development, the lab after receiving the notice from the authorities, reported 78 positive cases from March 8 to 10, 2021. With the details of 78 cases furnished by the lab, the district administration started a special drive to ensure home isolation and contact tracing of all reported 78 patients. Notably, the delayed reporting of these old 78 cases is believed to have led to the surge in new infections.
The Deputy Commissioner Ghanshyam Thori has asked all the labs to strictly adhere to the state government guidelines as timely reporting can ensure early checking of the virus spread. He said that any kind of delay in the reporting would attract action from the authorities as such instances would be reported to the higher authorities.