There are nearly 25 critically ill Covid patients referred to intensive care units waiting list at the hospital health sources said. A spokesman said that the number of Covid patients admitted under severe respiratory conditions was increasing, revealing that a 40-year-old Covid infected woman from the Kelaniya area who was admitted to the Colombo National Hospital with asthma died within half an hour.
Although Minister of State for Disease Control Dr Sudarshani Fernandopulle stated that there are 700 intensive care single beds in Sri Lanka that can treat patients with Covid disease, but more than 90 percent of that number is due to accidents, heart diseases, neurological diseases and other serious physical ailments. The sources said that it was practically impossible to admit patients infected with Covid to any of the beds as they were in units reserved for diseases.
In our subsequent inquiry, the Deputy Director General of Health Services (Public) Dr. M. Arnold said there are currently 82,08 Covid treatment centers with a capacity to treat 11,488 patients and 146 ICU beds have been set aside for intensive care units. He said that it was already possible to provide the required oxygen to the patients coming to the treatment centers.
But as of yesterday, the Mulleriyawa Base Hospital had only 80 cylinders instead of the 150 cylinders needed for daily oxygen supply. The health department points out that the actual number of intensive care unit beds currently available for critically ill Covid patients in hospitals reserved for Covid treatment is less than 40. Despite repeated requests, the health authorities have not acted to increase that capacity.
Out of 10 beds in the ICU of the Homagama Base Hospital, only 6 beds are operational for Covid treatment and out of the 12 beds in the intensive care unit at the Neville Fernando Hospital, only one bed out of the 30 beds at the Kotelawala Defense University Hospital has been provided. , The sources point out
According to reports, the special care unit of Pimbura Hospital has been set up with a capacity of 08 beds but the necessary equipment has not been provided to operate the unit. In Anuradhapura, 04 more special treatment beds and 02 ICU beds can be operated but the necessary supplies have not been provided. There is room for another special care unit bed at Mulleriyawa Base Hospital but no equipment has been provided to make that bed. These requests have been made for some time but have not been provided so far. If these intensive care and special care unit beds could be set up immediately to address the current serious situation, IDH The sources said that patients do not have to struggle with death in the hope of intensive care units at the hospital.
“They are hiding the truth … There are only six intensive care unit beds for Covid treatment in the entire Kandy district. There is not a single intensive care unit in the Northern Province that is reserved for Covid. They are starting to build those units now. The Kurunegala District does not really have … We have specialist doctors and staff with intensive care unit management experience. It was proposed to identify one Covid care Hospital in each district and provide the necessary facilities to that hospital and carry out disease management in that district based on that hospital. But what is happening now is the transfer of critically ill covid patients all over Sri Lanka from the ICU until the beds are empty. Often these patients die on the way. ” a medical professional commented to Lankasara.
At present a large number of patients have to be given oxygen in the hospital and in this situation the Director General of Health has sent a letter to the hospital directors asking them to confirm the amount of oxygen they have.According to the Medical Supplies Division, the Director of Health has sent a letter to the two companies in the country supplying oxygen to hospitals in the country and inquired about their capacity and confirmed that they can supply oxygen at three times the capacity currently supplied.
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