Twenty-five patients have succumbed to Covid-19 at Delhi’s Sir Ganga Ram Hospital in the last 24 hours amid a serious oxygen crisis unfolding in the national capital.
As per reports, the lives of 60 other such patients are at risk.
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Sources said, “low-pressure oxygen” could be the likely cause of the deaths.
“All we need is an uninterrupted and timely supply of oxygen,” SGRH Chairman Dr. DS Rana said.
There are more than 500 coronavirus patients, including around 150 on high-flow oxygen support, admitted to the hospital located in central Delhi.
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“Ventilators and BiPAP machines are not working effectively. Lives of 60 other patients at risk. Major crisis likely,” a senior official at the hospital said.
The hospital authorities are resorting to manual ventilation in ICUs and the emergency department, according to the official.
On Thursday night, the hospital officials had sent an SOS to the government, saying there’s only five hours of oxygen left at the health care facility and requesting that it be replenished urgently.
“At 8 pm, oxygen in store is for five hours for peripheral use till 1 am and less for high-flow use. Need urgent oxygen supplies,” an official had said.
The hospital had received some oxygen around 12.30 am, but the stock had to be supplemented later, sources said.
“A tanker carrying two tonnes of oxygen is stuck near Ambedkar Hospital,” a source said.
Several private hospitals in the city have been struggling to replenish their oxygen supply for the last four days.
Some of them have even requested the Delhi government to transfer patients to other health care facilities.
While some hospitals have managed to make short-term arrangements, there is no immediate end to the crisis in sight, a government official had said on Thursday.