CMCH all set to get 80 more oxygen-supported beds

Coimbatore: Four oxygen generators that can provide oxygen to 80 beds will soon be operational at the Coimbatore Medical College Hospital (CMCH).
The generators, being set up in the hospital’s cosmetic surgery ward, are likely to be commissioned on Monday. Each generator will serve 20 beds and produce around 100 litres of oxygen per minute. CMCH now has 504 oxygen-supported beds and 213 ventilator beds.
As many as 41 Rotary Clubs raised Rs 1 crore to install the four oxygen generators, which can serve 80 patients requiring oxygen. “All clubs are raising funds for the project. Corporates like Karur Vysya Bank and Aquasub Engineering also contributed large chunks from their corporate social responsibility fund,” said a club member.
Oxygen generators use a technology called pressure swing absorption, which takes atmospheric air, separates nitrogen and other gases, concentrates oxygen, and supplies it to patients. It will require an equipment to be set up between every two beds. The equipment will receive oxygen from a centralized compressor.
“We have machinery of varying capacity right from 20 beds to 100 beds costing from Rs 20 lakh to Rs 2.5 crore,” said Vivekanandan of Faraday Ozone, which is commissioning the generators. “Nine private hospitals in the city are in talks with us to set up the units,” he said.
If more such generators are set up in the district, dependency on the one or two suppliers of medical oxygen will reduce and help decentralize oxygen supply.