In Gurugram, shortage of beds, ICUs feared

Sushil Manav

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, June 14

Shortage of Covid beds, dedicated intensive care units (ICUs), ventilators and dialysis machines for patients is feared in Gurugram in the coming days as positive cases continue to soar at an unprecedented rate in the district.

With 3,294 positive cases, Gurugram district accounts for more than 45 per cent of Haryana’s total virus load. Of these, over 2,500 people have tested positive in 14 days of June as the virus load of Gurugram stood at 774 on May 31.

A total of 31 people succumbed to the virus in the district, of which 28 deaths occurred in the past 14 days. Gurugram today has more positive cases than those in all districts of neighbouring Punjab.

Residents as well as medical professionals fear that if the present trend continues, Gurugram is going to face an acute shortage of dedicated Covid beds, ICUs and ventilators in the coming days.

“People are already facing problems. People should know the availability of beds in hospitals. People should know which parts of the city are most affected. The authorities are tight-lipped on all these issues and they hardly share any information,” said Ranbir Singh Rathee, councillor from ward 34 (DLF) in the municipal corporation.

He alleged that the authorities were doing nothing to enforce wearing of marks and social distancing and containment zones were only in name as people roamed freely.

A look at Covid beds, ICUs, ventilators and other facilities available in Gurugram, as per information shared by the Health Department, suggests that there are 4,098 beds, 633 ICUs, 333 ventilators, 146 dialysis machines and 36 ambulances in the government and private sectors in Gurugram.

However, those dedicated for Covid are only a few, particularly in the government sector, where commoners can afford to go to private hospitals, charging between Rs 4 lakh and Rs 15 lakh for treatment of critical cases.

The government’s information shows that of the 836 Covid beds, only 125 are in the government sector — 58 in ESIC Hospital, 55 in SGT hospital and 12 in the Sector 31 polyclinic.

Of the 166 dedicated Covid ICUs, merely five are in the government sector. Only five of the 72 ventilators, one of the 10 dialysis machines and one of the five dedicated ambulances are in the government sector.

All these ICUs, ventilators, dialysis machine and ambulance in the government sector are in the SGT Medical College and Hospital, Gurugram.

Of these, 58 beds and three ICUs in the government sector and 324 beds, 80 ICUs and 30 ventilators in the private sector are presently occupied.

Dr Virender Yadav, Civil Surgeon, Gurugram, admitted that there was an unusual spike in the number of cases in the district in the past some days, but said the authorities were on the job to manage beds and other facilities looking into projections for the coming days.“Over 80 per cent of those testing positive are either asymptomatic or have mild symptoms and they can be isolated at their homes. Even today, over 1,400 people have been isolated at their homes,” he said.