Bengaluru: All hospitals with less than 30 beds to not admit COVID-19 patients

Hospitals in Bengaluru that have more than 30 beds are required to dedicate 80% of the facility for patients infected with coronavirus, announced Karnataka health minister K Sudhakar on Thursday.

In addition to this, hospitals with less than 30 beds have been mandated to not admit Covid-19 patients.

“All hospital beds except those for dialysis patients, mother- childcare and life-threatening diseases to be dedicated for Covid patients in Bengaluru. All nursing homes and hospitals with up to 30 beds should mandatorily treat non-Covid patients,” said Sudhakar.

“All hospitals in the state that have a bed capacity of more than 30 beds will now have to dedicate 80% of the beds and ICU facility for Covid-19 patients,” he added.

On oxygen production
The state has instructed the steel companies operating in Karnataka to ramp up oxygen production and supply them to hospitals here on a priority basis.

Karnataka Minister of Mines and Geology, Murugesh R Nirani on Wednesday said the state government has been taking all possible steps to tackle the public health emergency caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.

“We are leaving no stone unturned and making all the efforts to deal with the extraordinary situation the state is facing due to Covid-19. Steps are being taken to augment the supply of oxygen to hospitals,” Nirani said.

Briefing about his meeting with the representatives of steel companies, Nirani expressed hope that the efforts of steel companies in the supply of oxygen would ease the pressure on the public health system which is almost choked due to a tremendous number of coronavirus cases.

“We have instructed the steel companies which have been producing liquefied oxygen in their plants for their use in steel production, to increase the production and supply them to hospitals in the state on a priority basis. The steel companies have extended cooperation and agreed to increase the production and supply of oxygen. This will help save many patients who are in dire need of oxygen in the ICUs,” he added.

Replying to the quantity of oxygen needed in the state, the minister said he would hold talks with Sudhakar and find out the exact quantity of oxygen needed to address the current health crisis.

Cases in Karnataka
The state reported another biggest single-day spike of 23,558 new COVID-19 cases and 116 related fatalities on Wednesday, taking the total caseload 12.22 lakh and the toll to 13,762.

Bengaluru Urban alone accounted for 13,640 of the total number of cases. Live Mint