Amid surge in cases, Lady Hardinge Hospital reserves 48 beds for Covid patients

NEW DELHI: Amid a surge in COVID-19 cases in the national capital, Lady Hardinge Hospital here has reserved 48 beds for the patients.

Apart from this, six ICU beds and a ward with 30 beds have also been reserved for Covid patients in the new building of Lady Hardinge Hospital.

Additionally, 12 beds have been reserved for paediatric patients in Kalawati Saran Children's Hospital, which comes under Lady Hardinge Medical College.

Recently, the Director of the hospital also held a meeting with all the stakeholders and information was taken regarding all the arrangements related to COVID-19.

Earlier on December 23, a mock drill was also organised in the hospital.

Given the increasing cases, the hospital has made it mandatory for all healthcare workers to wear masks.

Meanwhile, Delhi Health Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj said that there is no need to panic as new covid variant only causes mild sickness.

"JN.1 is a sub-variant of Omicron and is a mild infection. This is the one spreading in south India. There is no need to panic. It causes mild sickness," Bharadwaj told ANI on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, a total of 109 JN.1 COVID variant cases have been reported in the country as of December 26, Health Ministry sources said on Wednesday.

The All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) of Delhi has issued guidelines regarding suspected or positive cases following the sudden surge in the coronavirus cases in the country.

AIIMS Delhi director held a meeting with all heads of departments of the hospital on COVID-19 contingency measures on Wednesday. In the meeting, policy on COVID-19 testing, the areas to be designated for positive patients and their hospitalisation was discussed.

The World Health Organization (WHO) recently classified JN.1 as a variant of interest, distinct from its parent lineage BA.2.86. However, the global health body emphasised that the overall risk posed by JN.1 remains low based on current evidence.