10 ventilators under PM Cares Fund not ‘technically fit’ at PGI Chandigarh

CHANDIGARH: Ten ventilators at the Covid hospital in PGI have been found to be inappropriate for patients, according to the hospital authorities. They were part of the 20 ventilators the UT administration had bought under the PM Cares Fund for the Covid hospital in Sector 48 that is under Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH), Sector 32. As the Sector 48 hospital had not started functioning, 10 of the 20 ventilators were sent to PGI.
“We did not find them technically fit for patients. A report has been sent to GMCH. They are still lying with us, as GMCH is yet to pick them up,” said a faculty member. He said, “The mechanics of the ventilators is not as desired. There is no 100% oxygen saturation level as the level of oxygen requirement varies from patient to patient.”

Last month, Rs 2,000 crore from the PM Cares Fund had been allocated for the purchase of 50,000 ventilators for government-run hospitals in the country.
It is not the first time that these Made in India ventilators have been found to be not satisfactory. In June, 81 ventilators were returned by Mumbai hospitals as they failed to boost oxygen to required levels in critical patients.
“We have 15 ICU beds in the Sector 48 hospital. After PGI’s report, we have asked our anaesthesia department to evaluate and test the 10 new ventilators we have got under this grant,” said Dr BS Chavan, director-principal, GMCH.
“The pathology of Covid patients’ lungs varies as it differs from acute respiratory distress syndrome. In patients, mechanical ventilation might further damage the lungs, so we try this as a last resort and instead go for non-invasive ventilator, where no tube is inserted inside,” said a doctor.