Ghaziabad Covid-19 hospital needs 12 anaesthetists, has only 1

Aditya Dev | TNN | Updated: Apr 8, 2020, 07:42 IST

Private doctors have refused to work at District Combined Hospital

GHAZIABAD: There is a dearth of anaesthetists at theDistrict Combined Hospital, which has been designated a Covid-exclusive (level 2) hospital.
Anaesthetists play a critical role in operating ventilators. According to officials in the health department, there is a requirement of at least 12 anaesthetists at the Combined Hospital alone. However, only one is available while two have applied for leave. In case a patient needs to be put on ventilator, the hospital could face some trouble.
The situation is not much better at the MMG District Hospital and District Women’s Hospital. While the former has two anaesthetists, the latter has just one.
The Combined Hospital also has another worry -- private doctors have refused to work there. “They are willing to offer their services for other tasks but not inside the Covid hospital as it would require them to stay in quarantine for at least a month, away from their homes,” said a senior health official.
The health department said the gap would be soon bridged as they are expecting to get anaesthetists from other districts. It has also written to the anaesthetists association in the district seeking assistance.
Chief medical officer NK Gupta said that the government has been made aware of the situation. “We will get doctors from other districts as level 2 Covid hospitals have not been created in others. As training is needed to run ventilators, we will organise a refresher course once all of them join duty here,” said Gupta.