JAKARTA: A month after recovering from Covid-19, a man was declared positive again for the disease in Medan, North Sumatra.
The patient, Ori Kurniawan, 25, is the first case of a person being re-infected with the disease in the province, where he had since been isolated at a hospital, according to The Jakarta Post.
Ori, who works as an aide to North Sumatra deputy governor Musa Rajekshah, had recovered from Covid-19 but was again declared positive for a second time after taking a swab test at the Adam Malik Hospital on Monday.
North Sumatra Covid-19 rapid response task force spokesman Aris Yudhariasyah said it was the first reinfection in the province.
"He is the first Covid-19 patient (in North Sumatra) to have experienced reactivation and reinfection, but where he got re-infected is still unclear," Aris said.
Aris said that after recovering from his first infection last month, Ori did not go on self-isolation but had instead returned to his hometown in the Bireun regency in Aceh. There, he had met his colleagues when he was at home.
"Currently, the Bireun Health Agency is tracking down people who have had direct contact with Ori," Aris said.
Ori was believed to have been infected with Covid-19 while on duty accompanying Musa during an official trip here and was put under isolation from March 25 by doctors at the Adam Malik Hospital.
He was declared to have recovered from the disease on April 6, in his first infection.
After being declared re-infected, Ori was hospitalised at Martha Friska Hospital in Medan.
Musa said he was shocked to hear about Ori being re-infected with the virus.
The deputy governor said he had told Ori to rest after recovering from his first infection.
"He asked for my permission to go home to see his parents in Aceh and to rest and I allowed it."
Musa said before Ori's return to Aceh, he told his aide to take a swab test again. The test came back positive.
"Ever since he took the swab test, I have not met him and he has yet to be allowed to resume work," Musa said.