Chandigarh: Covid cases waning, PGI pulls plug on dedicated facility

Tribune News Service

Naina Mishra

Chandigarh, October 4

Seeing a dip in Covid-19 admissions, the Post-Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER) has decided to do away with a dedicated facility set up at the Nehru Extension Hospital (NHE) to treat infected patients.

Now, isolation areas of respective departments will offer treatment to Covid patients. Earlier, patients testing positive were admitted to the exclusive facility.

The hospital had even reserved over 150 beds for Covid patients at the NHE when cases were on the upswing during the second and third waves.

However, with the case load witnessing a dip, the hospital authorities held a review and decided that Covid-19 patients would henceforth be managed in the isolation areas of respective departments, wards or units of Nehru Hospital as well as different centres of the PGI. Currently, only five patients are admitted to the Covid-19 facility at the hospital.

The staff posted in respective areas (nursing officers) would now manage the patients admitted in their areas.

The responsibility for the management of Covid patients will primarily lie with the parent unit where the patient is admitted.

It was suggested Internal Medicine could be contacted for management of Covid patients, if required.

Isolation facility (46 beds) has been identified in the male medical ward, female medical ward, male surgical ward, and female ward in Nehru Hospital for the management of Covid patients.

The officer in-charge of different centres will also identify such isolation areas in respective centres for the management of Covid patients.

The ICU in the Communicable Disease Ward at Nehru Hospital is used for the management of Covid. It will handle referral Covid-19 cases.

Besides, it has been decided to allow attendants to visit patients for only 30 minutes in a staggered manner while following Covid-appropriate guidelines.

Since 2019, the PGI has admitted 9,570 Covid patients, of whom 6,600 patients were discharged and 1,203 patients had died.

3 patients currently admitted

• Exclusive facility was set up at Nehru Extension Hospital for Covid patients. Over 150 beds were reserved during second and third waves. It now has only 3 patients
• Patients will now be managed in isolation areas of respective departments, wards or units of Nehru Hospital as well as different centres of the PGI
• Officer in-charge of different centres will identify isolation areas in respective centres. Staff in respective areas (nursing officers) will manage patients

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