Chandigarh: With just 60 ventilators, critical patient care at GMCH-32 suffers

At present, the hospital has around 60 functional ventilators in six intensive care units (ICU), a high dependence unit and in some wards

For families fighting to keep their loved ones alive in the face of life-threatening illnesses, securing a ventilator at the Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH), Sector 32, is a desperate and often futile struggle. Those who fail to secure it, often end up pumping air through ambu bags – a handheld, portable, self-inflating device used to provide ventilation to patients who are not breathing or struggling to breathe – for days on, not just hours, in the hope of reviving their loved ones.

Operating a single ICU ventilator requires an anaesthetist, two nurses, two resident doctors, technical staff, a sweeper and an attendant across three shifts, along with relievers. (HT Photo for representation)

All this because GMCH-32 has not been able to add ventilators or staff, despite getting a new emergency and trauma centre just six months ago.

At present, the hospital has around 60 functional ventilators in six intensive care units (ICU), a high dependence unit and in some wards. The demand is often much higher.

But even as attendants of critical patients run from pillar to post, trying to secure a ventilator, there are 60 other ventilators, acquired during Covid years, that are gathering dust at the hospital. Reason: The hospital administration has been unable to renew the annual maintenance contract for these ventilators, each one costing about ₹4 lakh. Moreover, the hospital lacks the manpower to run these.

Operating a single ICU ventilator requires an anaesthetist, two nurses, two resident doctors, technical staff, a sweeper and an attendant across three shifts, along with relievers. Several posts of technical staff are vacant in the medicine, paediatrics and pulmonary departments. Further, staffing resources are split between the Sector 32 facility and its 117-bed south campus hospital in Sector 48, worsening the crunch.

When contacted, GMCH director principal Dr GP Thami said, “New ventilators are in the supply stage and expected to arrive within 45 days. There are vacant positions but around 80% of staff positions are filled.” He denied there was any staff deficiency.

He added that ventilators procured during Covid-19 have been condemned and are not in use, and that 50-60 ventilators are being efficiently utilised. “Any patient on an ambu bag does not need a ventilator,” he maintained.