As fresh cases are adding in alarming numbers breaking the previous day's records, a special Covid-19 hospital which the Telangana government has “readied within three weeks” is expected to begin treating patients next week.
Telangana has registered 879 new cases on Tuesday and 872 the day before. While the total cases in the state till now are 9553, active cases are 5109. The number of deceased is also increasing worryingly and is at 220, till Tuesday night.
Announced as “open” amidst fanfare from April 20, “the 1500 bed capacity hospital”, with medical equipment installed, and showcased to the inter-ministerial central team on COVID-19 inspection, has been lying unused.
As DH had reported on June 11, health officials stated that the hospital would come into use when there is a bigger spike in cases, which Telangana is witnessing now.
On Wednesday, health minister Etela Rajender visited the “Centre for Covid-19”, located in Gachibowli, the IT hub of Hyderabad, and reviewed the facilities.
“The hospital is equipped with advanced amenities like in corporate hospitals. Out of 1224 beds readied, 1000 have oxygen facility and 50 have ventilators. Staff recruitment will be completed in two days and in-patient services will start in 4-5 days,” Etela said. “A canteen is also set up within the complex to prepare, supply food for the patients.”
A fortnight back, stating they are overworked, junior doctors at the Gandhi Hospital sat on a protest demanding that Covid-19 treatment be decentralized utilizing the Gachibowli hospital too.
The 14 floor sports complex building turned into Covid-19 hospital on a war footing had drawn comparisons with a hospital in Wuhan that China supposedly built in 10 days.
Chief Minister Chandrasekhar Rao declared that the hospital would continue services as the Telangana Institute of Medical Sciences and Research (TIMS), after the pandemic.