MAPUSA/PANAJI
According to sources, FrPrudencio Ferreira, who hailed from Mapusa, was among the 13 priests to havecontracted Covid at the Clergy Home and he along with two other priests werelater shifted to the Covid hospital in Margao, where he passed away on August25.
Fr Ferreira served in theadministration section of the St Xavier's College Mapusa for 26 years from 1963to 1989. He had also served as parish priest of Keri-Tiracol.
The funeral of Fr Ferreiratook place on August 26 in presence of his close family members, on account ofthe prevailing Covid pandemic restrictions.
Fr Ferreira is the secondpriest in the archdiocese to have passed away after contracting Covid, after FrNuno da Cruz, a diocesan priest of the Archdiocese of Goa and Daman, passedaway from Covid at the Covid hospital in Margao on August 15. Late Fr Nuno daCruz had also been residing in the Clergy Home, when 13 of 17 priests hadtested positive for Covid.
Meanwhile, Goa's Director ofHealth Services Dr Jose D'Sa tested positive for Coronavirus and beingsymptomatic with cough and fever has been admitted to the Manipal hospital inDona Paula.
D'Sa was admitted fortreatment to the Manipal hospital -- one of the four private hospitalspermitted to treat those who test positive -- after he underwent an antigentest on Thursday.
Health authorties carried outintensive contact tracing in the Directorate Of Health Services at Campal inthe capital city where Dr D'Sa operates from.
Also, screening and testing ofall the top doctors and paramedics manning the Goa governmnent's primary healthsetup is also being ramped up.
D'Sa is the third top healthofficial on the frontlines battling the Covid-19 pandemic in Goa to havecontracted the dreaded virus.
Earlier Dr Edwin Gomes whoco-ordinated the setting up of the ESI hospital in Margao as the State's firstCovid-19 hospital was the first health top gun to contract the virus in Julyafter he took a break following a continuous 3-month spell on duty.
Earlier this month, Dr MariaJose Pinto, assistant professor at GMC&H's microbiology departmentcontracted the virus. She was number two in the virology lab and was headingthe TrueNat testing.
Dr Pinto is recuperating atthe facility for doctors and paramedics at Margao Residency which is managed bythe Goa Branch of the Indian Medical Association.
Meanwhile, choice of a privatehospital for Dr D'Sa's recovery came in for some stick from Goa's Opposition.
Leader of Opposition DigambarKamat said D'Sa getting himself admitted to a private hospital aftercontracting the virus proves that the government's Covid-19 managementapparatus is in shambles.
A post on Kamat's verifiedtwitter handle said: "As Director of Health Services himself gets admittedto a private hospital after testing #CovidPositive, the preparedness of@GovtofGoa on handling & management of #CoronaPandemic &#PublicHealthCare stands completely exposed. Now, I can only pray to God forwell being of all."
"When Goa Medical Collegeis considered as one of the best hospitals in the state, it sends a wrongmessage that the head of the State's health services admits himself to aprivate hospital," Kamat said.
Also taking aim at thegovernment was the Aam Aadmi Party. It's Goa convenor Elvis Gomes slammed thestate government's preparedness to tackle the pandemic, citing D'Sa admittinghimself in a private hospital.
"We wish D'Sa recoverssoon, but it raises questions about the quality of healthcare infrastructureoffered by the state government," Gomes said.
