DILI, 20 March 2020 (TATOLI)- A Timorese judge, recently returned from Portugal, has been tested for Covid-19 after presenting to clinicians in Baucau with flu-like symptoms, health authorities said yesterday.
The Director-General of Health Services in Timor-Leste, Odete Viegas da Silva, said the woman returned from training in Portugal on March 12. She later presented to the Baucau Reference Hospital with flu-like symptoms.
“Doctors promptly provided care to [the] employee, who had a high fever and cough,” Ms Odete said.
Doctors wanted to isolate the patient in Baucau, Ms Odete added, but she refused, asking to be transferred to Dili instead. The patient is now in quarantine at her residence, Ms Odete said.
The judge is the first Timorese citizen suspected of carrying the Covid-19 virus, which has affected more than 257,000 people worldwide. There are no confirmed cases in Timor-Leste.
Director Odete said six Timorese employees attended the training in Portugal alongside the patient. A swab sample has been sent to a laboratory in Darwin, Australia for analysis.
At the time of the patient’s departure from Portugal, the country had registered 59 confirmed cases. As of March 20, the figure stood at 785 – with three deaths.
Portugal’s President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa declared a state of emergency on Wednesday, as officials scrambled to stop the spread of the virus.
Journalist: Felicidade Ximenes
Editors: Robert Baird; Agapito dos Santos
Translation: Nelia Borges
