A 300-bed COVID Care Centre began functioning at Rakab Ganj Gurdwara in central Delhi on Monday afternoon and 24 people were admitted till 6 p.m., according to authorities.
Only people with an oxygen level (SPO2) of 85 and above can get admitted, which implies that serious patients will not be admitted. The treatment is free and there is no admission fee. Resultantly, there was no crowd at the centre and serious patients were being referred to Lok Nayak Hospital.
300 beds functional
“Currently, we have made 300 of the 400 beds functional. The rest will be made available in the next 3-4 days,” said Nem Singh Premi, Chairman of IHRO, which has also helped in providing healthcare workers, many of who are working voluntarily. About 200 healthcare workers, including 50 doctors, will be working in three shifts once the occupancy increases.
A family that came to admit a woman had to wait for more than an hour, but could not be admitted as the patient’s SPO2 level was below 80. “We had told them initially itself that her oxygen level is low and we can’t take her, but they kept waiting,” said Ranjit Verma, who was in-charge during the afternoon shift. The family finally left for Lok Nayak Hospital.
However, the process was smooth. Shekhar Sehrawat (20), who came to admit his father, said: “They only asked for the Aadhaar card and did not take any money.”
Health Minister Satyendar Jain visited the centre, set up by Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee along with International Human Rights Organisation (IHRO) and the Delhi government, on Monday morning and said the government had chipped in with medical equipment.
Support system
“All support will be given and facilitated by the Delhi government. The centre has been attached with Lok Nayak Hospital. In case any patient develops critical symptoms, he or she will be shifted to the hospital [Lok Nayak]. The Delhi govt. has taken care of the medical facilities and equipment. Other than that, all facilities were set up by the DSGMC itself. We do have ample number of beds and in case a patient who is admitted here gets severe, they will be shifted to the ICU ward of hospital,” the Minister said.