MARGAO
Attribute it to cyclone Tauktae or simply a decline in Covid cases, city’s two major Covid hospitals “ South Goa district hospital and ESI, Margao reported a slight reduction in admissions as well as patients visiting the casualty since Saturday night.
Wary doctors do not want to rush to any conclusion over the situation, keeping their fingers crossed as they do not rule out the rush of patients in the next two days on the assumption that the cyclone and weather conditions may have kept many a suspected patient indoors.
As on Sunday noon, the total number of admissions in the South Goa district hospital were pegged at around 485, indicating that close to around 50 beds were lying vacant in the hospital till noon. Doctors, however, said that these 50 beds can be filled up within no time if one goes by the rush of patients, normally witnessed during night hours.
The doctor, however, pointed out that both the casualty and OPD in the district hospital has not witnessed any rush of patients in the last two days. “Our staff manning the casualty had to breath easy last night since hardly few patients came to the hospital for a check up. This is a good and positive sign, but we do not want to rush to any conclusion for the moment since there’s also a possibility that suspected patients might have preferred to stay home because of the cyclone,” he remarked.
Similar was the situation at the ESI hospital, which had in recent days playing host to around 235 patients. On Sunday, the number of patients admitted at the ESI hospital was put at 220, leaving some rooms for the hospital management to adjust in case of rush of patients late night. “Since last night, we have seen a slight reduction in the number of patients coming to the hospital. The percentage may be negligible, but we see the change,” remarked a doctor.
He, however, did not rule out the possibility of patients making a beeline to the hospital in the event they have preferred to stay home on Saturday and Sunday in view of the cyclone. “We only hope patients do not come rushing at the hospital at the eleventh hour if they have stayed at home because of the cyclone,” the doctor said.
Doctors, attached to the district hospital and ESI hospital, pointed out that there’s a reduction in the number of deaths of patients. In fact, the ESI hospital did not report any death in the last two days, sources said.
