As COVID Cases Rise In Delhi, ICU Beds In Hospitals Are Almost Full & It's Worrying
Intensive care unit (ICU) beds for COVID-19 patients in the capital are nearly full with new cases showing an upward trend and often hitting daily highs.?Over 87% beds with ventilators and 84% beds without ventilators are occupied currently.?
Only 65 beds with ventilators vacant
ICU facilities in the city are in such short supply that some hospitals are squeezing more beds into existing wards ahead of the weekend.?Most of the major hospitals have reached maximum occupancy, while many just have a single bed available for patients requiring ICU and ventilator support.?
The total number of ICU beds with ventilators in the city is 1,283 of which 1,119 (87 per cent) is occupied. Only 164 beds (13 per cent) are vacant.Of the 809 ICU beds with ventilator support in government hospitals, only 99 are vacant. Of the 474 ICU beds with ventilators in private hospitals, only 65 are vacant.?
80% ICU beds reserved?
This comes as top 33 private hospitals in Delhi are working to abide by the order reserving 80% of ICU beds for Covid patients.?But they aren¡¯t happy, according to a lobby group that represents them. The move will discourage non-Covid patients from seeking treatment at some of the capital¡¯s top specialist hospitals, it said. This follows the Delhi High Court lifting a stay on Thursday on a state government order directing such quotas.
In government-run Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital, doctors have packed beds into ICU wards to the closest permissible limit."We have increased the number of beds but there are limitations of distancing and ventilation," Desh Deepak, a senior pulmonologist said speaking to The Times of India.?
"We're operating at almost full capacity in ICUs.""God forbid if anyone else needs hospitalisatiion... what would happen two days down the line?" he said. "That is even scarier."
COVID numbers
On Wednesday, Delhi recorded over 8,000 new cases, the highest single-day count reported in the city since the outbreak of the pandemic.?India has so far reported around 8.6 million coronavirus infections - the world's second highest after the United States - and 127,571 deaths. But overall, it has been adding fewer cases daily since a mid-September peak, and its fatality figure of 92 per million people is well below the world's tally of 160 and the United States' 711.?
