All ICU beds occupied, 47% of ventilators still non-functional

OF THE TOTAL 119 VENTILATORS, ONLY 63 ARE OPERATIONAL AT THE FACILITY

FARIDKOT: Even as the daily Covid cases in Punjab has seen a dip in the past fortnight, all level-3 beds are occupied at Guru Gobind Singh Medical College and Hospital (GGSMCH), Faridkot. Besides, 47% ventilators are still non-functional at the facility, which caters the south Malwa region of the state.

Against a daily caseload of 8,668 May 11, the state reported 4,539 new cases on May 25. The positivity rate has also dropped from 15% to 6.51%. Of the total 119 ventilators, only 63 are operational at the Faridkot facility.

With 450 isolation beds facility, the GGSMCH is providing care to critical Covid patients from Bathinda, Mansa, Muktsar, Moga, Ferozepur, Fazilka and Faridkot districts.

As per official records, all 128 level-3 Intensive care unit (ICU) beds with ventilators and 175 of the 320 level-2 beds are occupied. Following non-availability of beds, critically ill patients have to wait or go to another level-3 facility in other district.

On May 11, 73 of the total 119 ventilators at the GGSMCH were found non-functional following multiple defects. Of the 73 nonfunctional ventilators, 71 were received under PM Cares Fund. Though engineers of a private company visited the facility to repair the ventilators, all of them are yet to be operational. Doctors have also refused to certify some ventilators due to snags.

GGSMCH medical superintendent Dr Shilekh Mittal said they are facing a shortage of level-3 beds as patients from nine districts are visiting the facility. “We are stuck in a cycle as 3-4 ventilators are being repaired everyday but the same number of these machines stop working due to some defect,” he added.

Dr Ruhee Dugg, registrar, BFUHS, said: “Some repaired ventilators are yet to be certified doctors. We put the machines on a 24-hour trial run as we cannot test them on patients directly.”