Crisis at Dhanbad’s Covid-19 hospital as doctors skip duty
DHANBAD: Treatment of Covid-19 patients at the now overcrowded Bharat Coking Coal Limited (BCCL) Central Hospital in Dhanbad crippled on Friday as doctors skipped duty following completion of 21-day quarantine.
These doctors were to resume duty on Friday at the dedicated Covid-19 hospital after they completed home quarantine on Thursday.
Covid-19 hospital nodal officer cum senior medical officer of the district’s health department Dr Alok Viswakarma admitted that doctors of the BCCL Central Hospital did not report for duty in the first shift, which starts from 6am.
One doctor and nurses are deployed in each shift for Covid patients, he informed. The first shift ends at 2pm, the second starts from 2pm and ends at 10pm, while the third shift lasts from 10pm to 6am. “Since the number of patients has increased, additional doctors have been deployed in each shift at the hospital”, said the nodal officer.
“In the last four days, no doctor has visited the ward,” patients at the Covid hospital, including 24 media persons admitted on Tuesday, said.
“Only a nurse come and gives us medicines in a packet. However, district Indian Medical Association (IMA) secretary Dr Sushil Kumar Singh visit wards of admitted media persons twice a day for voluntary service”, said one of the admitted media persons.
The dedicated Covid-19 hospital of BCCL has a capacity of 100 beds, which, however, got overcrowded with a total of 104 patients at the hospital till Thursday . Following this, eight patients, including a doctor, were shifted 20km away to Jamadova Hospital of Tata Steel, Jharia colliery division.
NO QUARANTINE FACILITY FOR DOCTORS IN DHANBAD
Doctors of Dhanbad treating Covid patients on Friday complained of not being provided special quarantine facility.
“After a week of treating patients, we have to be in 21 days’ quarantine but at home and not at an institution. However, doctors in Ranchi and other districts are put in institutional quarantine ”, said a doctor.
Civil surgeon Dr Gopal Das could not be reached for comments as his mobile phone was switched off..
THESE DOCTORS WERE TO RESUME DUTY ON FRIDAY AT THE DEDICATED COVID-19 HOSPITAL OF BCCL AFTER THEY COMPLETED 21 DAYS’ HOME QUARANTINE ON THURSDAY