Gandhi may be made corona hospital

Hyderabad: The entire Gandhi Hospital will be transformed into a coronavirus treatment ward if Telangana enters into community transmission phase (stage 3) of the deadly virus.

Of the 1050 beds, 100 beds will be allocated for critical care patients, who require ventilator support, while the remaining beds would be set aside for positive cases, who don't have co-morbid conditions.

Health Minister Eatala Rajender held a review meeting in this regard on Thursday, hours after Telangana reported three new cases with no foreign travel history or not even primary contacts of confirmed positive cases.

The Health minister directed the Director of Medical Education to take necessary steps in this regard. Already, operations and other departments have been shifted to OGH from Gandhi. Apart from Gandhi, King Koti Hospital will also be put on standby for only treating coronavirus positive patients.

Gandhi Hospital Superintendent Dr Shravan Kumar said they need less than a week to do the needful. He said they are being given 130-odd nurses for Covid-19 duties apart from the existing staff, he said.

If the number of patients increases, there will be a big requirement of personal protection equipment and accordingly Eatala directed senior officials to procure them immediately. Meanwhile, in a video conference with Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan, Eatala urged the former to accord permission to manufacture PPE, ventilators and ICU equipment in Hyderabad in ECIL, BDL and DRDO.

He also appealed to the Union minister to take steps so that drugs, medical equipment and essential goods are not stranded at state borders. Eatala urged the Centre to send N95 masks, ventilators and PPEs for TS, a list to this effect has already been sent to New Delhi.