The blood sample from the medical student who has been put in isolation at the Coast Provincial General Hospital (CPGH) has tested negative for coronavirus, a Mombasa County officials has confirmed.
Dr. Khadija Shikely, who is the Mombasa Chief Health Officer, said the sample was tested by the Kenya Medical Research Institute.
But the county is also waiting for results on the second sample that was sent to South Africa.
In the meantime, the patient Shukri Jamal Mahmood will remain in isolation at the Coast hospital.
Panic had engulfed medics in two hospitals in Mombasa following the suspected case of coronavirus.
Ms. Mahmood had first been seen at the Mombasa Hospital, which is a private facility but was later taken to CPGH on Friday, January 30.
The doctors at the two hospitals who handled the student were asked to inform the authorities if they started to experience coronavirus-like symptoms.
The 22-year-old student arrived in Kenya from Guangzhou, China through the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport on January 30 at 6 am.
“She started feeling unwell while in China, she complained of chest pains and difficulty in breathing. We are monitoring her keenly awaiting the blood samples analysis,” Dr Shikely said.
The student studies medicine at the Southern Medical University in Guangzhou.
She is currently in isolation at the Rehemtullah ward in the CPGH.
“We are attending her as a special patient; nobody is allowed to visit her except the nurses. She is progressing on well. Even her temperature is reading normal,” said a doctor who is not allowed to speak to the media.
A spot check by People Daily at the private wing of the hospital on Sunday established that the entrance has been locked and a security guard under strict instructions not to allow anyone near the area.
