Oxygen shortage in Surat: NCH, SMIMER stop taking new patients

On Thursday and Wednesday, New Civil Hospital received 44 Metric Tons (MT) oxygen even as 60 MT was used, while SMIMER hospital, which used 28 MT oxygen, got 22 MT. According to the health department, in NCH, 25 patients are on ventilator, 335 on BiPap, 403 patients are on oxygen support. In SMIMER hospital, 23 patients are on ventilator, 182 on BiPap and 100 on oxygen support. As many as 970 patients are under treatment in NCH, while SMIMER hospital has 441 patients.

The Surat Municipal Corporation had signed an MOU with 94 private hospitals in the city to reserve their 50 per cent bed vacant for treatment of Covid-19 patients.

Officer on Special Duty Milind Torwane said, “We are getting less stock of oxygen. With the available oxygen, we can only treat patients who are already admitted. We have signed an MOU with 94 private hospitals in the city. There are 4,746 beds in private hospitals, out of which 3,608 are having ventilator facilities and at present 1,138 beds are vacant. Apart from this, there are 87 beds with ventilator facility vacant and 127 beds vacant in the private hospitals.”

“We have coordinated with the 108 ambulance services and instructed them not to bring the patients to the NCH or SMIMER hospital and told them to take the patients to private hospitals. The patients can get treatment under government quota and it should be intimated to the civic body authorities,” Torwane added.

He further said, “From NCH and SMIMER hospital, we are shifting patients with mild symptoms and does not require oxygen support to the Samras Centre at VNSGU hospital. We have kept a few beds vacant to deal at both the hospitals patients who need oxygen support. Once we have sufficient oxygen capacity, we will admit more patients in both these hospitals. We are getting many patients from other districts including Navsari, Valsad, Tapi, Dangs, Bharuch and Narmada.”