GMCH raises count of beds with ventilator support to 149

Naina Mishra

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Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, August 25

With a capacity of 149 ventilator beds, the Government Medical College and Hospital, Sector 32, a tertiary care hospital in Chandigarh, is prepared to deal with an imminent surge in cases of novel coronavirus.

Till May, there were roughly 126 ventilators in all four government hospitals in the UT — the GMCH-32, the GMCH South Campus in Sector 48, the PGI and the GMSH-16.

During the second surge, the GMCH-32 had used 48 ventilator beds for Covid-19 patients. But these were never enough given the rising patient load in the city. The healthcare system in the UT has been teetering on the brink with many hospitals unable to handle the relentless inflow of patients while also running out of ICU beds.

GMCH Director Dr Jasbinder Kaur said, “We had received additional 74 ventilator beds during and after the second wave from individual donations and the Government of India. Now, the total capacity of the institute is 149 ICU beds with ventilator support. We are well-equipped to manage any surge in the infection.”

Not only this, the institute has also augmented its RT-PCR testing capacity to 1,200 tests per day, which was only 450 tests per day during the second wave.

The UT Administration had to request the GMCH-32 and the PGI to enhance their RT-PCR testing capacity as the Covid reports were delayed. Due to a limited capacity, the turnaround time of Covid reports was 72 hours and the Administration was forced to rope in private labs for the same.

Although, the GMCH was a 500-bedded hospital, the overall bed capacity has been upgraded to 980 beds, including 124 beds at the GMCH-32 South Campus.

‘RT-PCR testing capacity enhanced’

We have also purchased two more RT-PCR testing machines so that our testing capacity is enhanced. We are hopeful of conducting up to 1,500 tests per day. — Dr Jasbinder Kaur, Director, GMCH