Siparia family in quarantine gets 10 more days

The Siparia family that lost a father and son hours apart to covid19 last week has been given an additional ten days to quarantine at home.

Verlenie Dass-Ramkalawan, 28, who tested positive for the virus, told Newsday that an official from the County Medical Health Office (St Patrick district) contacted the family on Monday.

The worried mother of two said the official also told them the family can reintegrate into society without additional tests after the ten days.

"What if, after the ten days, we are still carrying the virus? That is reckless and risky. We are trying to see if we can get some proper answers as to why we will not be tested again," Dass-Ramkalawan said.

"What if we go out there and infect someone? That will be on our heads. We do not want that. We already lost two family members. We want to avoid any deaths. I have a one-year-old child who has the virus, and that bothers me daily."

Her father-in-law Premnath Ramkalawan, 66, a pensioner, died around 5 am on Thursday, and his son Mahindra Nigel, 38, died a few hours earlier, on Wednesday, at about 3 pm.

Dass-Ramkalawan’s mother-in-law, Sumentra, 56, husband Andy, 29, and their one-year-old daughter also tested positive. On Monday, health officials told her that her son, age two, was negative.

The family is home-quarantined in the same house at Murray Trace.

"Yesterday (Monday), the results confirmed that my husband was also positive. My son’s result came back negative. My son tested the same time with the rest of us (April 30)," Dass Ramkalawan said.

"A week and a half later, we get the results.

"What if my son is positive? We do not know. He is in the household with everyone positive.

"We should be given another test to show we are negative before going out there. The family is ok, but we are concerned."

The family has been in quarantine since April 25. Mahindra and his mother were first tested on April 26. The rest of the family, including his father, were tested four days later, on April 30.

The World Health Organization says people may not show symptoms of covid19 for up to 14 days after infection.

Although some people may not show symptoms, it is still possible to spread the disease. For that reason, the quarantine process may last for 14 days.

Contacted for comment, senior corporate communications officer at the Health Ministry Al Alexander replied, "Medical concerns and responses will be dealt with by the relevant CMOH. As you are aware, medical information on individuals is confidential."

The Health Ministry’s website says the medical professional overseeing the quarantine process for the patient will make a decision based on whether the person shows symptoms, the severity of illness, etc.

It also says if people do not have symptoms of covid19 for the 14 days of self-quarantine, on the 15th day, they may come out of self-quarantine. The ministry advises that the individual should follow the general health precautions.

If people develop symptoms during or after self-quarantine, they call the hotline 877-WELL (9355) for further guidance.