Delhi: Many more hospitals raise alarm bells over shortage of oxygen supply

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While many top private hospitals had spoken of depleting oxygen levels on Wednesday, the next line of hospitals with relatively lesser numbers of Covid-19 patients have now also started to face the heat.

Shortage of oxygen supply continued in Delhi for the third consecutive day on Thursday with many more hospitals raising alarm bells over unavailability. While many top private hospitals like Max, Apollo, Sir Ganga Ram and Fortis had spoken of depleting oxygen levels on Wednesday, the next line of hospitals with relatively lesser numbers of Covid-19 patients have now also started to face the heat.

Most of the hospitals claim officials from M/S INOX have not been able to fulfill their requirements.

The situation is grim at Shanti Mukund hospital in East Delhi where the current oxygen supply will last for only 30 minutes. Dr SK Saggar, CEO hospital, said, “We have been banging the doors of the government, ministers and the oxygen suppliers. We need oxygen supply for the 110 Covid patients admitted in the hospital. If the supply is not replenished, we will have to discharge the patients. Many will lose their lives.”

Saroj Super Speciality hospital in Rohini, which had 130 Covid patients as of Thursday afternoon, has been relying on oxygen cylinders as liquid oxygen supply has been disrupted for the last few days. Dr P K Bharadwaj, medical director of the hospital, said, “We have been contacting officials since morning. The liquid medical oxygen supply will have to be replenished as the needs of patients cannot be met through oxygen cylinders. The oxygen cylinders will last for around three hours.”

At Sri Balaji Action Medical Institute in Paschim Vihar, the existing oxygen supply will last for five hours.

“We are in a very difficult situation. All the hospitals in the city are facing the same problem, and we are worried about our patients. There are 220 Covid patients in the hospital, of which 80 are in the ICU. Those admitted in the ICU need continuous high flow of oxygen, whereas the remaining 180 in the wards are also in need of oxygen,” said Dr Rajiv Bansal, head of the hospital.