Prefer mask to graveyard: Principal SKIMS
Excelsior Correspondent
Srinagar, July 14: After the spike in the number of COVID-19 positive cases and criticality of such patients in Kashmir, the hospitals are readying for the challenge and increasing the bed capacity of High Dependency Units (HDUs) and Intensive Care Units (ICUs).
Medical Superintendent of Sher-e-Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences (SKIMS) Soura, Dr Farooq Jan, told Excelsior that after the spike in the cases they increased the bed capacity from 65 to 165 in last three days and are ready to add 55 more beds in short notice of few hours.
He said that 118 patients are admitted to the hospital and around 100 are on oxygen support and some of them are critical. “Sometimes the condition of these patients deteriorates all of a sudden”, he added.
Dr Jan said that they are readying the hospital Saria where stable patients can be shifted. “It will be a COVID care centre which has a capacity to accommodate 70 patients”, he said.
Principal SKIMS Medical College Bemina, Dr Reyaz Untoo, told Excelsior that the COVID situation is alarming and 80 percent beds in the hospital are occupied and the number of critical patients being admitted to the hospital are on increase for the last 2-3 weeks. He said that 10 patients are critical and 38 are on oxygen support.
He said that hospital has 174 beds with 130 for medicine and rest are for other departments where COVID patients are being treated. He said that initially they had 20 HDU beds and now they have been increased to 50 and within 10 days there will be 100 HDU beds. He said that there were 4 ICU beds and now there are 10. He said that increasing the ICU and HDU beds needs more staff which will be provided.
Dr Riyaz said that the virus has become more virulent and the number of cases will rise. He blamed people for the rise as they are not following the SOPs. He said that without masks people are endangering their and others lives.
He said that the virus is going to remain and “we have to live with it”. He said a simple mask will prevent entry of virus into the body. “Good hand sanitation and hand washing will prevent the spread”, he added.
He said that masks are the cheapest vaccine presently. “Prefer mask to graveyard”, he suggested.
Medical Superintendent Chest Diseases Hospital Srinagar, Dr Salim Tak, told Excelsior they have 120 COVID beds with 20 ICU and 100 HDU beds. He said that the hospital is full of the COVID patients with 50 percent of them on intermittent oxygen and the number of critical cases are on rise.
He said that CD hospital has 24 beds at Kashmir Nursing Home which are for asymptomatic patients.
The nodal officer novel coronavirus at Government Medical College Srinagar, Dr Mohammad Salim Khan, said as the COVID-19 positive cases have increased for the last few weeks and the hospital has reserved 178 beds for coronavirus patients.
He said that they had 20 beds only and they were for isolation and the positive cases were being referred to CD hospital. He said that they now have 4 ICU beds and 60 HDU beds where there is a high flow oxygen facility. He said that presently there are 20 patients admitted to the hospital with few of them critical.
Dr Bilquis Shah, Incharge COVID-19 at JNLM hospital in Rainawari Srinagar told Excelsior that they have 150 beds for general COVID patients and 35 for gynecology COVID patients. She said that 85 patients are admitted to the hospital and 30 are symptomatic with majority of them on oxygen support and all of them are on antibiotics.
She said that 60 beds are High Dependency where high flow oxygen is available and there are 10 ICUs beds with four ventilators and six more ventilators have arrived and will be installed shortly.
She said that the hospital is not accepting the asymptomatic patients now and 20 of them who were admitted have been shifted to COVID care centre at NIT.
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