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People who travelled on public transport between Dublin and Belfast should not be concerned about the risk of Covid-19, the North’s Public Health Agency (PHA) has said.<\/p>\nPeople who travelled on public transport between Dublin and Belfast should not be concerned about the risk of Covid-19, the North’s Public Health Agency (PHA) has said.<\/p>\n
Anybody in close contact with Northern Ireland\u2019s first Covid-19 patient has been contacted, the HSE and the North’s health authorities said.<\/p>\n
The woman traveled through Dublin Airport on her way home after flying with Aer Lingus from northern Italy with a child.<\/p>\n
She was tested at the Royal Victoria Hospital in Belfast but is being treated in isolation at home.<\/p>\n
The PHA has completed the contact tracing process associated with the person who tested positive for Covid-19 and those requiring appropriate advice have been provided with it.<\/p>\n
Dr Jillian Johnston, consultant in health protection at the PHA, said: \u201cAll stages of the individual\u2019s journey were identified and those who came into closest contact have been traced and contacted with public health advice and guidance.<\/p>\n
\u201cI would emphasize that members of the public who have traveled between Dublin and Belfast using public transport need not be concerned.<\/p>\n
\u201cContact tracing is an effective and efficient method carried out by the PHA to help prevent the further spread of infections such as Covid-19.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn addition, the agency will be moving to providing twice-weekly updates on the number of tests completed on individuals who meet the case definition. As of today, 93 tests have been completed, with 92 confirmed as negative and one as presumed positive.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen a patient tests positive for an infectious disease, an interview is carried out with the patient to help identify those who they may have come into closest contact with, then a process begins by public health professionals to trace and communicate with those individuals.<\/p>\n
\u201cOnce contact has been made, the appropriate advice can be given to these individuals based on whether they are at high risk, low risk or there is no risk.<\/p>\n
\u201cRegular contact is kept with those in the higher risk categories and if they experience any symptoms, appropriate medical intervention will take place.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf there are any links to another country, the PHA works with its counterparts in those jurisdictions to enable appropriate investigations into potential contacts and actions to be undertaken.\u201d<\/p>\n