Delhi: Hospitals resume routine admissions, surgeries as Covid-19 cases fall

AIIMS was the first to stop routine admissions, surgeries, and procedures in January first week when the Covid-19 cases had started increasing. This was done as a contingency plan to make space for Covid-19 patients. In the process, the hospital had also moved all trauma care services from the stand-along trauma centre to the main hospital, a move that was opposed by several doctors from the hospital.

Planned surgeries were resumed in mid-June after the massive second wave of Covid-19. Routine surgeries and procedures had remained suspended for nearly 10 months during the first wave of the pandemic and were restarted only in January last year.

There were 2,272 fresh cases of Covid-19 reported in Delhi on Friday, with a positivity rate of 3.85 per cent. At the peak of the current surge over 28,000 cases and positivity rate of 30.64 per cent was reported. This is comparable to over 28,000 cases and positivity rate of 36 per cent reported during the previous surge. However, the delta variant led to more severe disease with over 20,000 persons admitted to hospitals at the peak of the previous wave in comparison to around 2,700 during the current wave.

Currently, there are just 1,200 patients admitted to city hospitals.

Lok Nayak and GTB hospitals had stopped routine admissions and surgeries as per government’s order during the second week of January. “In view of the downing trend in number of Covid-19 cases in Delhi, it is hereby directed that routine/elective surgeries shall be started in Lok Nayak hospital and Guru Teg Bahadur hospital … with immediate effect,” according to an order by the special secretary (health) SM Ali.

The services at all three hospitals were curtailed at a time when several healthcare workers were testing positive in one go resulting in staff crunch.