11 patients discharged, active Covid-19 cases down to 111

They brought the nationwide discharges tally to 144 by Friday afternoon, including five earlier in the day.

The patient released in Ho Chi Minh City is "Patient 204," a 10-year-old Vietnamese boy. He returned to Vietnam from Turkey on March 15, a day after he’d flown to Istanbul from Prague, capital of the Czech Republic.

He was quarantined on arrival in HCMC and tested Covid-19 positive on March 27. He was treated at the HCMC Children's Hospital.

There was a emotional reunion after the boy, who does not speak much Vietnamese after having living abroad most of the time, cried and hugged his mother.

As his father watches, "Patient 204," a 10-year-old boy, hugs his mother after being discharged from the HCMC Children's Hospital, April 10, 2020. Photo by VnExpress/Hung Pham.

His mother thanked doctors and nurses for taking care of her son "with all of their love" and helping her family "overcome such a dark period."

"Patient 135," discharged from Da Nang Hospital, is 27-year-old Nguyen Tra My, a native of the northern city of Hai Phong.

She had left the Danish capital of Copenhagen on March 19 and transited in Doha (Qatar) and Bangkok (Thailand) before landing March 21 in Da Nang on Bangkok Airways flight PG947. She was quarantined upon arrival and was confirmed to have contracted the novel coronavirus on March 25.

The last of six Covid-19 patients treated in Da Nang, she left the hospital to the applause of doctors and nurses.

Covid-19 "Patient 135," Nguyen Tra My (C), presents some cakes to the staff of the Da Nang Hospital as a token of her appreciation after being discharged April 10, 2020. Photo by VnExpress/Nguyen Dong.

Da Nang treated all its six Covid-19 patients at the Da Nang Hospital. The latest discharge means all the staff can take a break after a month of fighting the disease and staying away from their families.

"This is the first victory of the hospital in the fight against Covid-19. It was made possible thanks to the tireless efforts of all doctors and nurses at the Department of Tropical Medicine," said hospital director Le Duc Nhan.

The nine patients discharged in Hanoi – Patients 25, 86, 94, 148, 194, 202, 205, 237 and 249, included a nurse at the Bach Mai Hospital, the biggest Covid-19 hotspot in Vietnam linked at least 45 cases, 27 of them employees of the Truong Sinh Company, which supplies food and logistics services to the hospital.

All nine patients were released from the National Hospital for Tropical Diseases Friday afternoon.

"Patient 86," a nurse at Bach Mai Hospital is all emotional when she is discharged from Hanoi's National Hospital of Tropical Diseases, April 10, 2020. Photo by VnExpress/Ngoc Thanh.

"Patient 86," 54, is a nurse working at the HIV Outpatient Clinic of Bach Mai Hospital's Center for Tropical Diseases. Patients 194, 202 and 205 are all employees of the Truong Sinh Company that provides food and water to the hospital.

"Patient 25" is a 50-year-old British woman admitted to hospital on March 8.

"Patient 148" is a Frenchman, 58, who arrived in Hanoi March 12 as a tourist and was confirmed Covid-19 positive on March 24.

"Patient 94" is a 64-year-old woman from the northern province of Bac Giang. She had visited her daughter in the Czech Republic on February 29 and returned to Hanoi on March 18 before she was quarantined and confirmed positive on March 21.

"Patient 94," Do Thi Binh, makes a sign of victory as she is discharged from Hanoi's National Hospital of Tropical Diseases, April 10, 2020. Photo by VnExpress/Ngoc Thanh.

"Patient 237" is a 64-year-old Swedish man with blood cancer who has been traveling in Vietnam since last December. On March 31 he had a nose bleed and a family member took him to the hospital for a checkup. His sample was taken on April 1 and it tested positive.

"Patient 249" is a 55-year-old Vietnamese man who flew back from the U.S., transited in Hong Kong, and arrived in Vietnam on March 22. He was confirmed infected in early April.

All discharged patients will be medically monitored at home for another 14 days per the protocol set by the Health Ministry as an extra protective measure to prevent further transmission of the Covid-19 virus.

With Friday’s discharges, the number of active Covid-19 cases among the total of 255 recorded in Vietnam so far has dropped to 111.