The government has broken its silence after reports emerged that a patient exhibiting coronavirus-like symptoms passed on in Nairobi yesterday.
In a tweet on Sunday, the Health Ministry stated that samples taken from the patient, who passed away at the MP Shah hospital, tested negative for the virus.
“The Government wishes to inform the public that there is NO confirmed case of #Coronavirus (COVID-19) disease in Kenya. Last evening, one suspected case (now deceased), was investigated at MP Shah hospital but turned negative on testing for COVID-19, ” the tweet reads.
UPDATE: The Government wishes to inform the public that there is NO confirmed case of #Coronavirus (COVID-19) disease in Kenya. Last evening, one suspected case (now deceased), was investigated at MP Shah hospital but turned negative on testing for COVID-19.
— Spokesperson GoK (@SpokespersonGoK) March 8, 2020
The government added that investigations are ongoing to establish the source of the leakage of “confidential patient information.”
“Meanwhile, investigations have been launched to determine how privileged and confidential patient information was leaked out and shared on social media, ” the government said.
2. Meanwhile, investigations have been launched to determine how privileged and confidential patient information was leaked out and shared on social media.
— Spokesperson GoK (@SpokespersonGoK) March 8, 2020
Read: Panic As Man With Coronavirus-like Symptoms Dies In Nairobi After A Flight From India
According to a report by Citizen TV, the deceased, a Kenyan man of Indian descent complained of fever shortly after flying into the country from India.
The 59-year-old was admitted at the private hospital’s Intensive Care Unit (ICU) where he died three hours later.
The reports elicited angry reactions on social media with a section of netizens, who believed the man had been infected with the virus, questioned how he was cleared at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) where the government said it had activated screening.
The reports come just hours after the government launched an isolation facility at Mbagathi Hospital to handle coronavirus cases.
Read Also: Coronavirus: Gov’t Temporary Lifts Italy Flight Ban, Suspends International Activities In Kenya
While opening the facility on Friday, Health CS Mutahi Kagwe said 1100 health workers have been trained to handle coronavirus cases.
The coronavirus that broke out in China in December last year has killed over 3500 people with at least 95000 others infected globally.
However, in Africa, the cases have been minimal, with a majority of those confirmed to have the deadly virus being foreigners.
The Kenyan government has maintained that there are no cases of coronavirus in the country as all reported cases have tested negative.
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), coronavirus is a respiratory illness clinically resembling viral pneumonia and manifesting as fever, cough, and shortness of breath.
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