Patna: 50% beds in Covid wards of many hospitals unoccupied

PATNA: Nearly 87% of the corona patients in the city are under home isolation, as a result of which more than 50% of the beds in the Covid-dedicated hospitals are unoccupied.
According to the latest data shared by the Patna district administration, out of the 2,057 active corona cases in the state capital, 1,794 have opted for home isolation. This, say health experts, implies that majority of them are either asymptomatic or have mild or moderate symptoms because only such patients are put under home isolation.
Dr Sanjeev Kumar, nodal officer for Covid-19 at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences-Patna (AIIMS-P), told this newspaper on Friday, “Around 50% of the beds in the Covid ward of the AIIMS-P are empty because many patients with mild or moderate symptoms are being treated at peripheral and district hospitals.Besides, a large number of people are opting for home isolation instead of hospitalization,” he said and added that 66 of the 70 beds in the ICU were still occupied.
At present, only five beds are occupied at the recently inaugurated Covid care unit in Bihta. Similarly, nearly 70% of the beds are vacant at the makeshift corona treatment centre on the premises of the Patliputra Sports Complex. Altogether 411 Covid beds are also empty at the Nalanda Medical College and Hospital.
Patients attribute the increase in demand for home isolation to holistic treatment, family’s emotional support and fear of hospitalization.
A 32-year-old Patel Nagar resident isolated himself in his bedroom after testing positive for coronavirus earlier this week. He also bought medical equipment like an oxygen cylinder, a pulse oximeter, blood pressure monitor, nebulizer and weighing machine. He said, “I only have a sore throat. So, I made all the necessary arrangements at home because I am scared of hospitals.”
Some patients have other concerns like food quality, dirty washrooms and unhygienic surroundings at hospitals. A 55-year-old banker from Punaichak, whose entire family tested positive for corona recently, pointed out, “All of us have mild symptoms and chose to stay at home because we were not sure about the quality of food served at hospitals. Here we are consuming turmeric milk, ‘kadha’ and medicines.”
Meanwhile, the Covid control rooms of the district administration are keeping a tab on the patients under home isolation by calling them up regularly and enquiring about their health.
An Ashiana Nagar resident, who recovered from corona under home isolation, said, “I used to get a call from the Covid control room every day at 11am. They would enquire about my health daily. To me dealing with the disease was a psychological task rather than a physical one.”