Twenty-five “sickest” patients at the Sir Ganga Ram Hospital here died on Friday as it faced oxygen shortage in the middle of the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic.
Satendra Katoch, the Medical Director of the Hospital sent out a message about the death of 25 “sickest” patients and sought immediate intervention for restoring oxygen supplies
“25 sickest patients have died in the last 24 hours. Oxygen will last another two hours. Ventilators and Bipap not working effectively. Resorting to manual ventilation in ICU and ED. Major crisis likely,” Katoch said, updating the situation at the hospital at 8:00 a.m. on Friday.
He said the lives of another 60 “sickest” patients were at risk and sought urgent intervention.
However, D S Rana, the Chairman of the Board, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital said it would be wrong to say that deaths at the hospital were due to shortage of oxygen.
“We provided oxygen to patients manually when the pressure dipped in the ICU,” Rana said adding that the hospital received 2000 cubic meters of oxygen at around 9:20 a.m.
Hospitals in the national capital continued to report oxygen shortages for the fourth consecutive day with Max Healthcare, which runs a chain of hospitals in the city, complaining of short supplies.
“SOS – Less than an hour's Oxygen supplies at Max Smart Hospital & Max Hospital Saket. Awaiting promised fresh supplies from INOX since 1:00 a.m. Over 700 patients admitted, need immediate assistance,” Max Healthcare said on Twitter.
Bram Healthcare and Batra Hospital moved the Delhi High Court seeking steady supplies of oxygen.
“Hospitals continue to gasp for breath despite government orders being issued. It is now becoming an hourly challenge for many hospitals,” Sangita Reddy, Joint Managing Director, Apollo Hospitals, said.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal raised the issue of shortage of oxygen during a meeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi had with chief ministers of states that have reported higher number active Covid-19 cases.