As Covid-19 cases in the rest of Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) and interior Maharashtra are rising relentlessly, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is worried that the trend will impact the death rate in the city and availability of beds. According to the BMC, over 40 per cent of the Covid-19 patients in the Covid care centres, BMC hospitals and state-run facilities are from outside Mumbai and the interiors of Maharashtra. "Patients from MMR and interior Maharashtra are being shifted to Mumbai and are being treated at civic hospitals and Covid care centres here. We have left no stone unturned to increase the bed capacity and ensure no patients face non-availability of beds. Hospital beds are allotted only to those who are symptomatic or critical. We are not refusing any patients who are coming to civic hospitals. A majority of the patients from MMR are being treated at the jumbo centres," said Iqbal Singh Chahal, BMC commissioner.
Elaborating on the impact on city health infrastructure Suresh Kakani, BMC additional commissioner (Health) said: "Mumbai is under control mainly because of several campaigns and aggressive strategies adopted by the civic body. Over 40 per cent of the total patients in the city belong to MMR and other regions in the interior Maharashtra majority of which are from Sangli, Satara, Dhule, Jalgaon, Nashik etc.”
Lack of proper health infrastructure to fight the second wave has caused a serious setback to the state's Covid situation. Further, it has overwhelmed Mumbai's hospitals and testing facilities. The number of deaths in the city on Wednesday was 78. The number increased to 82 on Thursday. The Case Fatality Ratio (CFR) has shot up significantly. The daily CFR on April 7 was 0.23 per cent. On Wednesday, it was 1.56 per cent and on Thursday it jumped to 1.96 per cent.
While the number of cases is declining gradually, the demand for beds in the city remains stagnant. As of February 11, 2021, the total bed capacity for covid patients in the city was 12,925. Of this 1,707 were ICU beds, 6869 oxygen beds and 1,033 were ventilator beds.
As of April 29, the total bed capacity in the city has been increased to 30,060 of these, 2887 were ICU beds, 11,147 are oxygen beds and 1474 are beds with ventilators. As per the data shared by the civic body of the total bed capacity of 30,060, a total of 19,652 beds are already occupied. Meanwhile, only 73 of the total 2,887 ICU beds were available and only 20 of the total 1,474 beds with ventilators were available. While of the total 11,147 only 1,480 oxygen beds are available.
