<p>Faced with complaints from Covid-19 patients and their families who are unable to secure beds in hospitals, the BBMP has moved to streamline the allocation of beds.</p>.<p>In a new circular, D Randeep, Special Commissioner, Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), made it mandatory for all admissions and discharges of Covid-19 patients to be done through the Covid Hospital Bed Management System (CHBMS), set up by the Palike and the Suvarna Arogya Suraksha Trust (SAST). </p>.<p><strong>Read: <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/city/top-bengaluru-stories/bengaluru-startup-develops-mask-that-ruptures-covid-19-envelope-865726.html" target="_blank">Bengaluru startup develops mask that ruptures Covid-19 envelope</a></strong></p>.<p>This applies to both Covid-19 patients referred under the government quota of beds and private beds administered by private medical establishments. </p>.<p>The system does away with the previous method of issuing physical admission slips or referral letters by BBMP zonal commissioners, which had come severe criticism for being unregulated and arbitrary. </p>.<p class="CrossHead"><strong>'Letters hard to obtain'</strong></p>.<p>Activists and volunteers involved in bed allocation in the city told <span class="italic">DH</span> that the referral letters and slips were notoriously difficult to obtain from certain zonal authorities. This led to a swathe of patients attempting to secure a hospital on their own. This often created bed shortages with non-critical patients occupying the limited number of beds available for Covid-19 care.</p>.<p><a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/national/coronavirus-news-live-updates-andhra-pradesh-reports-record-8147-cases-karnataka-government-changes-rates-for-rt-pcr-antigen-testing-864013.html" target="_blank"><strong>For latest updates and live news on coronavirus, click here</strong></a></p>.<p>But in the case of technical issues with the CHBMS portal, the director of the portal will issue a notification to hospitals about the site being down, during time hospitals can insist upon a physical BBMP referral letter from the patient, during the “duration of the notification.” </p>
<p>Faced with complaints from Covid-19 patients and their families who are unable to secure beds in hospitals, the BBMP has moved to streamline the allocation of beds.</p>.<p>In a new circular, D Randeep, Special Commissioner, Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), made it mandatory for all admissions and discharges of Covid-19 patients to be done through the Covid Hospital Bed Management System (CHBMS), set up by the Palike and the Suvarna Arogya Suraksha Trust (SAST). </p>.<p><strong>Read: <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/city/top-bengaluru-stories/bengaluru-startup-develops-mask-that-ruptures-covid-19-envelope-865726.html" target="_blank">Bengaluru startup develops mask that ruptures Covid-19 envelope</a></strong></p>.<p>This applies to both Covid-19 patients referred under the government quota of beds and private beds administered by private medical establishments. </p>.<p>The system does away with the previous method of issuing physical admission slips or referral letters by BBMP zonal commissioners, which had come severe criticism for being unregulated and arbitrary. </p>.<p class="CrossHead"><strong>'Letters hard to obtain'</strong></p>.<p>Activists and volunteers involved in bed allocation in the city told <span class="italic">DH</span> that the referral letters and slips were notoriously difficult to obtain from certain zonal authorities. This led to a swathe of patients attempting to secure a hospital on their own. This often created bed shortages with non-critical patients occupying the limited number of beds available for Covid-19 care.</p>.<p><a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/national/coronavirus-news-live-updates-andhra-pradesh-reports-record-8147-cases-karnataka-government-changes-rates-for-rt-pcr-antigen-testing-864013.html" target="_blank"><strong>For latest updates and live news on coronavirus, click here</strong></a></p>.<p>But in the case of technical issues with the CHBMS portal, the director of the portal will issue a notification to hospitals about the site being down, during time hospitals can insist upon a physical BBMP referral letter from the patient, during the “duration of the notification.” </p>