A pronounced challenge during the COVID-19 lockdown for hospitals has been that of assuaging people in the community who are in panic, said Preetha Reddy, vice-chairperson, Apollo Hospitals.
“The anxiety has made people fearful of coming to a hospital for medical treatment. However, there cannot be a lockdown in providing medical care,” she said.
Across the Apollo network of hospitals, 620 isolation beds are dedicated for treating COVID-19 patients,” she added.
In Chennai, an exclusive facility to treat COVID-19 patients at the Apollo Speciality Hospitals in Vanagaram has so far admitted and treated 201 patients since March 28, Ms. Reddy said.
Among the patients were a 90-year-old woman and her 60-year-old son. Both were discharged from the hospital after making complete recovery. Many other patients, in the high-risk category due to their age, have also recovered and been discharged. A few of them did require ventilator support, she said.
“The patients are being managed in floors exclusively marked for managing COVID-19 cases. The floors have been transformed into isolation facilities, which includes private rooms and ICUs, all equipped to function as negative pressure rooms. A total of 50 beds are in readiness,” she told The Hindu.
On managing the costs involved, she said the virulence of SARS-CoV-2 was higher compared to similar viruses. Therefore, in treating COVID-19 patients, there were new elements that added to the cost of care, she said.
The hospital provides four to six personal protective equipment (PPE) for every person coming in contact with the patients.
Managing patients
Explaining how patients were managed, she said that patients arriving at the hospital were triaged and categorised into either of the three categories depending on the severity of their condition, clinical presentation and existing co-morbidities — category A, B or C.
Category A and category B1 patients are considered to have a mild infection, requiring only symptomatic treatment on an out-patient basis. They are advised home quarantine with regular monitoring of symptoms. Category B2 patients are considered to have a moderate infection, requiring in-patient care, while category C patients are considered to have a severe infection as they usually present with critical clinical parameters, often requiring life-saving treatment, on presenting to the emergency room. These patients are admitted to the COVID-19 ICUs and are given 1:1 nursing care and other supportive treatment.
Apollo Hospitals has initiated the “Apollo Project Kavach”, a comprehensive response plan for COVID-19, Ms. Reddy said.