Beds don't treat patients, say hospitals hit by doctor shortage

Days after 36 private hospitals were served notice by the BBMP for not reserving 50% of beds for government quota Covid-19 patients, the management opened up about a looming crisis with regard to the shortage of doctors.

Authorities at Narayana Health, one of the hospitals which got the notice, said 270 of their healthcare workers have been infected ever since the pandemic started. The hospital is treating them at its own expense with no support from the government.

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“Beds don’t treat patients. Doctors treat patients. We only have four senior intensivists and six junior intensivists for managing the Covid ICU and wards,” said Viren Shetty, Executive Director, Narayana Health. He said the hospital has so far treated 966 Covid-19 patients sent by the government. “We have treated more than 3,000 patients since the outbreak. Right now, we are managing 160 BBMP patients in our health city (campus) and another 150 patients have been directly admitted.”

A total of 35 healthcare workers in the Covid-19 ward are currently positive and undergoing treatment. “Our doctors are exhausted and haven’t seen their families for weeks. How are we supposed to manage more patients? Covid isn’t the only disease in India,” he said, adding that they have hundreds of patients on the waiting list for surgery. “Our ICUs are full of cancer patients, cardiac patients, patients with kidney failure, children with holes in the heart... Where are they going to go?”

Ramaiah Harsha hospital is another one served with a BBMP notice. Dr. Naresh Shetty, president, MS Ramaiah Hospital, said, “This is in Nelamangala and acts as primary care centre. It is a 40-bedded hospital taking care of patients around Nelamangala, and Tumkur patients. It can take care of mild patients as facilities and manpower are limited. It is not within BBMP limits.”

He said they have given 500 beds as an organisation for serving moderate and severe Covid-19 cases. “I am not sure how much more we can do. We request some amount of empathy from the officials concerned. We are tired of being forced. We are fulfilling our obligations. Actually, the government should be happy we are taking care of the rural population. Which patients of Bengaluru city would want to go there in a setting which has minimum facilities,” Dr. Shetty questioned.

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Dr. Ravindra Ramaiah, president, Private Hospitals and Nursing Homes Association, said, 26 employees of his hospital have recovered from Covid so far. Seven are currently in treatment. “My CEO and one consultant are in home isolation. Eight nurses, an administrative manager (on a ventilator in a CCU), finance manager, billing manager, deputy medical superintendent, CEO, and all my administrators have been infected, and yet we have allocated 30 of the 70 beds for government quota Covid patients. The BBMP should not force hospitals that are not capable,” he said.