Oxygenated 100-bed COVID care facility set up at Haj House in Srinagar

An oxygenated 100-bedded COVID care facility has been set up at the Haj House in Srinagar, an official spokesman said on Saturday.

The District Disaster Management Authority (DDMA), Srinagar set up the facility in the Bemina area of the city in the wake of rising coronavirus cases.

The spokesman said the facility came up at the Haj House in just a week's time.

He said the chief medical officer Srinagar apprised Deputy Commissioner (DC) Mohammad Aijaz Asad, who is also the DDMA chairman, that patients referred by a physician having mild symptoms of COVID-19 infection and require oxygen support of fewer than 10 litres per minute, can be admitted at the facility for isolation as well as treatment.

The health department is in the process of procuring more bulk oxygen cylinders and oxygen concentrators to augment the bed capacity at Haj House, the spokesman noted.

The DC was informed that a duty roster for medical officers and paramedical staff has also been framed to look after the admitted patients.

The DDMA chairman said the initiative of establishing the 100-bedded facility is aimed at decongesting tertiary care hospital occupancy.

Asad said it will also serve the purpose of decongesting unnecessary occupancy of 'precious' beds in tertiary care hospitals by shifting patients having oxygen requirement of fewer than 10 litres per minute and are not on injectable medications to the facility at Haj House.

He said it is not a medical facility, but an oxygen support facility and shall act as an oxygen bank.

Asad said the initiative is a joint venture of DDMA Srinagar, District Health Society and District Red Cross Society.

He added that more oxygenated beds shall be established as per directions of the L-G to further strengthen the oxygen support system in the Srinagar district.