Government ventilators to private hospitals only for quota patients
Hyderabad: New protocols come up at private hospitals
With a surge in the COVID-19 patients requiring ICU beds with ventilators, the State Health Department on September 23 has decided to lend ventilators to private medical hospitals in the State for a period of six months. This is to meet the shortage of ventilator beds.
Sources said the government's move comes in the wake of private medical establishments not reserving 50 percent of all types of beds, including the ICU beds with ventilators for the government quota patients even though they are mandated by the government.
A citizen volunteer told The Hans India that for example if the private hospitals have 10 ventilators, they should keep five reserved for the government quota patients but that remains only on paper as the private medical establishment might have used the other five as well for non-government quota patients.
"This is happening for the past one month after the demand for ICU beds with ventilators had risen. If the BBMP website shows that there is an availability of 130 ventilator beds but it is not true. Even the palike is not bothered about this. The poor are suffering. The rich are able to afford the ventilators but for the poor the only way to get treatment is through the government quota. The private hospitals are not giving enough ventilator beds in the government quota despite the fact that 50% of all types of beds should be reserved for the patients referred by them," said Ameen-e-Mudassar, co-founder of Covid helplinebangalore.com.
According to the circular issued by the state health department on Wednesday, the ventilators given by the government should be used on government referred patients.
"The ventilators shall be returned to the department of health and family welfare after the Covid pandemic subsides in good and working condition," the circular said.
Meanwhile, the Deputy Commissioners of all districts have been asked to submit the requirement of ventilators received from private hospitals.
As on Wednesday, 816 critical Covid positive patients are admitted into the ICU across the state out of which 259 are in Bengaluru.