Covid hospital bed management system to be restarted: Health and Medical Education Minister Dr K Sudhakar

Health and Medical Education Minister Dr K Sudhakar said that the system would reflect details on vacant beds available in both public and private hospitals

To cater to the rising number of Covid patients requiring hospitalisation, the government will restart the Covid hospital bed management system that was implemented last year.

Health and Medical Education Minister Dr K Sudhakar here on Thursday the system would reflect details on vacant beds available in both public and private hospitals.

"BBMP Special Commissioner (Health) Rajendra Cholan has told me that this portal will be ready in a week. Bed vacancies will shortly reflect on this portal. Be it bed vacancies in ICUs of public hospitals or private, it will be available on this online portal," he said.

He further said that the Covid nodal officers will be stationed in all hospitals and help desk or kiosks will also be set up so that the public, especially walk-in patients, get relevant information.

Read: Govt to tighten watch on home-quarantined persons

"All Covid hospitals will have help desks and kiosks to help with information dissemination to the public," he said.

He further said that just like the last year, a mandate to provide test reports in 24 hours will be enforced.

"As far as contact tracing goes, a minimum of 20 primary and secondary contacts have to be tested," he said.

Apartment complexes to be periodically sanitised

The minister directed the BBMP to sanitise apartment complexes in the city periodically. Out of the 22 Covid clusters in the city currently, at least nine are apartment clusters, as per information in the March 24 BBMP bulletin.

Sudhakar reiterated that actors, producers and film distributors should control film promotion events and fan campaigns in view of the rising number of Covid cases in the city.

"I have also requested the Election Commission to issue guidelines for campaigns. Any election campaign will have huge gatherings. But we can't control Covid this way."