Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, June 16: The central oxygen supply suddenly dipped today in Isolation Ward of Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH), Jammu for around five minutes that led to hue and cry among the patients and their attendants.
According to the reports, at about 11:20 this morning, the central oxygen supply started dipping suddenly in Isolation Ward of the Hospital, where 14 COVID patients were undergoing treatment. As the condition of the patients started deteriorating due to dip in oxygen supply, their attendants sounded an alarm.
The health care workers including doctors and paramedical staff started putting the patients on oxygen cylinders amid hue and cry of the attendants to save their patients whose oxygen level dropped below safety levels but everybody was stunned with sudden dip in oxygen supply.
The mechanical wing of the Hospital was alerted immediately and according to the reports, someone has put the valve of the oxygen supply to the Isolation Ward in off mode. As soon as it was notice by the mechanical staff, they put the valve in on mode and restored the oxygen supply.
The whole episode took around about five minutes but if the oxygen supply was not restored timely or if the doctors and other health care workers had not acted timely, many lives could have gone.
When contacted, XEn Mechanical GMCH Jammu Bodh Raj admitted that the oxygen supply to Isolation Ward had dipped this morning for a few minutes as some mischievous elements had closed the valve of the oxygen supply to Isolation Ward.
Meanwhile, attendants of the patients admitted in the Isolation ward has demanded the Hospital administration as well as Financial Commissioner, Health and Medical Education Department to order enquiry into the matter as many patients could lose their lives due to sudden dip in oxygen supply.
Pertinent to mention here that last year a patient died due to shortage of oxygen in GMC Jammu after which an enquiry committee was constituted and on acting on its findings, Incharge XEn and an Incharge Deputy Medical Superintendent were suspended from services as they were found to be dealing with the situation in a casual and unprofessional manner.
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