MARGAO
Perhaps for the first time since the second Covid wave affected large sections of people, not just patients, but authorities handling oxygen supply now breathe easy.
With the rising number of vacant beds at the two city-based Covid hospitals -- the South Goa district hospital and the ESI hospital -- indicating reduced number of admissions since the last few days, oxygen requirement too has come down drastically during the corresponding period.
After having undergone the nightmares, sometimes burning midnight oil, just to ensure there’s no dearth of oxygen supply to the two hospitals, the district authorities finally heave a sigh of relief over the welcome news.
They have, however, not lowered their guard, with the deputy collectors ensuring that the liquid oxygen tankers proceeds to Kolhapur every day to procure the States’ quota of Liquid oxygen, and ensuring that the oxygen trolleys reach the hospital from the filling points with police escort.
At the South Goa district hospital, which was packed with patients earlier this month, even prompting the administrators to accommodate patients on mattresses, oxygen supply is no more an issue today.
The district hospital was utilizing around 5700 litres of liquid oxygen every day, with the tankers filing up the tank twice a day. Besides, the hospital used to use sizeable number of oxygen trolleys. The situation, however, has changed for the better with the district hospital’s requirement of liquid oxygen now put at 4000 litres a day and around 5-7 oxygen trolleys. “The oxygen requirement was huge earlier this month when the hospital played host to 534 patients. Today, the patients admitted in the hospital is put around 320, which means less oxygen requirement”, remarked a senior district hospital doctor.
That did not stop the district authorities to ensure that the stakeholders meet the requirement of oxygen on time. “We ensure the oxygen tanker goes every day to Kolhapur to bring the State’s quota of liquid oxygen”, informed deputy collector, John Fernandes.
Similar is the situation at the ESI hospital, Margao. Unlike the district hospital, the ESI hospital was totally dependent on the oxygen trolleys to meet the requirements of the 235 patients which were accommodated during the Covid peak earlier this month.
ESI Medical Superintendent, Dr Vishwajit Faldesai informed that the hospital required around three trolleys of oxygen and 12 cylinders to cater to the patients. “With admissions coming down to a great extent, leaving around 70-odd beds vacant, the ESI hospital’s total oxygen trolley requirement has now come down to two and the oxygen cylinders below 100”, Dr Faldesai said.
Compared to the Goa Medical College and hospital, Bambolim, doctors in private say both the South Goa district hospital and the ESI hospital, which together accommodated close to 800 patients during the second wave, never had any issues over oxygen, thanks to the mechanism put in place by the district authorities and personally monitored by the district Collector, Ruchika Katyal and deputy Collectors, Jyoti Kumari and John Fernandes.
