As the coronavirus cases surge in Delhi, complaints regarding lack of facilities of COVID-19 patients are beginning to surface, hinting at a medical crisis of sort in India's national capital. On Saturday, certain reports also suggested doctors are struggling to deal with patients since the Delhi government has asked them to admit patients without conducting COVID-19 test first.
According to a report by Indian Express, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital received an order on June 3, which asks the hospital to stop testing patients for coronavirus. The hospital received the order for allegedly flouting ICMR guidelines. Following this, on the same day, the Delhi government announced the hospital, which has a capacity of 675 beds, will have to reserve 80 per cent of its beds for treatment of Covid-19 patients.
And since then, hospital management says it is struggling to manage the inflow of patients. Apparently, several chemotherapy sessions had to be put on hold, a breast cancer surgery was delayed and there was a late night scramble at the emergency ward to treat a 12-year-old. The said boy, allegedly was showing Covid symptoms and had diabetes, and with testing banned, the staff created a separate space for the boy.
The doctors at the hospital feel not testing patients for Covid and asking the hospital to take in more patients are two contrasting decisions.
The decision comes after a couple of private hospitals in Delhi refused admission to COVID-19 patients and demanded lakhs of rupees for allotting bed to those in a pressing need. Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Saturday warned of strong action against such "black-marketing of beds".
Asserting that there is no lack of hospital beds in the national capital to treat COVID-19 patients, Kejriwal said his government will deploy medical professionals at private hospitals to keep a tab on available beds.
"We will take strong action against such hospitals and they cannot refuse patients. Some time will be needed to break the mafia who are indulging in it. These few hospitals have political connections but they should not be under illusion that their political masters can save them," he said in a virtual press briefing. He, however, also added that many private hospitals were being co-operative and it was only a handful of private hospitals that were indulging in such malpractices.
