A nine-month-old boy had to be admitted to a Covid-19 hospital in Panskura this week though he didn’t have the infection as he couldn’t be separated from parents who were detected with the novel coronavirus.

Although the baby was at the Boroma Corona Hospital in Panskura for eight days, he didn’t test for the pathogen and was released on Friday, along with the mother who had recovered from the disease.

A family of four adults from Haldia who had tested positive for Covid-19 on May 7 were admitted to Boroma, along with the nine-month-old. Although the infant did not test positive, his admission was necessitated because relatives were unwilling to take care of a member of the family afflicted by the pathogen.

Sources said a grocer tested positive for the novel coronavirus a few days after his elder brother had been diagnosed with the disease in early May. Later, the grocer’s two sons and daughter-in-law also tested positive.

On Friday, the 30-year-old mother and the infant were released from Boroma after both had tested negative on Thursday. Hospital sources said the mother and the child were given special attention because the baby needed breast milk.

“We kept the mother and the child two beds apart and under constant observation. Whenever he needed to be fed, we adopted protective measures,” said a doctor at the hospital.

Nitai Mondal, chief medical officer (health) of East Midnapore, on Friday commended the staff at Boroma for managing to keep the infant free of the coronavirus despite an eight-day stay. The facility has at least 16 Covid-19 patients now.

“We are happy that in spite of being in the risk group, an infant didn’t contract the virus thanks to vigilance by medical workers,” he said.

A health officer said patients who were brought to the hospital were tested on the fifth day after they reported positive. “If tests carried out on the fifth and seventh day are negative, a patient is sent home where they have to stay in quarantine for a further period,” he said.

In another instance, a woman from Jhargram’s Jamboni was admitted to Boroma on May 10 though she didn’t have the disease as she wanted to be with her one-year-old son detected with Covid-19.

Sources said the child had tested negative on Friday.

“We allowed the mother because she was unwilling to let the child be admitted alone,” said hospital nodal officer Sachin Nandan Rajak, adding that the mother and child were both stable and would be tested on Monday.

“If they test negative, they will be released,” he added.

Asked, the mother said she was not worried about herself.

“I do not care about Corona. I only need to be with my child,” she said.