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Your Space: Scale up medical oxygen supplies
While the medical oxygen crisis is hitting the headlines after the shortage of beds and vaccine, should not the authorities take steps for hospitals to generate their own oxygen to meet the rising demand?
Prime Minister has recently lauded Maharashtra government’s efforts to check the spread of Covid-19 during the ongoing second wave. While the medical oxygen crisis is hitting the headlines after the shortage of beds and vaccine, should not the authorities take steps for hospitals to generate their own oxygen to meet the rising demand?
Sugar factories should produce medical oxygen
Hospitals with independent oxygen manufacturing ability are the need of the hour. We need to invest around 20 per cent of budget in health infrastructure to mitigate the crisis. There is a need to train every youth of the country for Covid-19 management. Dedicated online and offline education is required for teachers and youth to fight against Covid-19 and related requirements. Why are we late when medical experts have observed that the second and third wave is expected? Spike in positive cases and deaths is reported across India. It seems that the health system is unable to handle the crisis and residents are apprehensive and confused about hospital treatment. Even the WHO says that they know much about the virus, and they are still learning.
India is a country with huge population, expert medical professionals and big pharmaceutical companies, then why not a proper strategy is laid down at the national, state, district and local administration level? Medical oxygen is an indispensable medicine in the treatment of Covid-19. We have to ask for help from other countries. Why not all our sugar factories produce oxygen and supply across the country. Medical oxygen logistic and supply chain also matters.
Dr Aftab Anwar Shaikh
Ramp up medical infra in district
Each district collector has to manage adequate supply of medical oxygen, hospital beds, isolation wards for Covid-19 patients and a well-planned vaccination drive at a time when the country is struggling to meet the logistical challenges which a collapsing healthcare system of our state is being exposed every day. There is a need for the administration to have prepared a detailed plan to tackle the deadly second wave of coronavirus and put in place a contingency plan. The government had not anticipated that the cases could shoot up any moment and that an oxygen plant could come in handy if more people fall sick because of the disease. Without much ado, they should have set up oxygen plants. Money is a crucial requirement for setting up a robust healthcare system that needs many ambulances, ventilators, beds, oxygen plants, vaccines, medicines, trained medical staff, nurses and policy makers among others. The government must use a combination of resources, including district planning and development funds, state disaster relief funds, and mobilised the CSR units to meet the expenses for starting up oxygen plants. Efforts should be made to utilise medical resources and set up oxygen plants in the district. This is the best way to lead forward and become self-sufficient.
Sanjay Kumar
Set up more oxygen plants
The mechanism of setting up oxygen plants will further strengthen public health system and enable long-term systematic augmentation of its availability in a cost-effective manner. Adequate and uninterrupted supply of oxygen is an essential pre-requisite for managing moderate and severe cases of Covid -19, in addition to various other medical conditions where this need arises. Installation of PSA Oxygen Concentrator Plants in public health facilities is an important step to reduce the health facility’s dependence on the system of store and supply and to enable these facilities to have their own oxygen generation capacity. This will not only increase the total oxygen availability pool, but also facilitate providing of oxygen support in timely manner to patients in public health facilities.
Ashlesha Dethe
Take proactive steps to ensure adequate supply of O2
While talking about the medical oxygen availability in healthcare facilities across the country, the government must take various proactive steps to ensure adequate supply of medical oxygen. The government should believe in proactive and graded response to the pandemic to augment oxygen supply and we are in an extremely comfortable position when it comes to supply of medical oxygen. Various steps need to be taken for infrastructure augmentation, ensuring uninterrupted oxygen supply, monitoring and coordination with state governments and proactive interventions.
Ashish Balgude
In-house O2 generation facility must
The basic aim behind establishing oxygen generation plants at government hospitals in the district headquarters is to further strengthen the public health system and ensure that each of these hospitals has a captive oxygen generation facility. Such an in-house captive oxygen generation facility would address the day-to-day medical oxygen needs of these hospitals and the district. In addition, the liquid medical oxygen (LMO) would serve as a “top up” to the captive oxygen generation. Such a system will go a long way in ensuring that government hospitals in districts do not face sudden disruption of oxygen supplies and have access to adequate uninterrupted oxygen supply to manage the Covid-19 patients and other patients needing such support
Anita Bisht
Centre has approved setting up of O2 plants
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has given direction of boosting availability of oxygen to hospitals, the PM CARES Fund has given in-principle approval for allocation of funds for installation of 551 dedicated Pressure Swing Adsorption (PSA) Medical Oxygen Generation Plants inside public health facilities in the country. The availability of Liquid Medical Oxygen has to be increased each day with contributions from private and public steel plants, industries, oxygen manufacturers as well as through prohibition of supply of oxygen for non-essential industries. The state government has to ensure that oxygen supply to various states happen in a smooth, unhindered manner and there is a need to fix responsibility with the local administration in cases of obstruction. We have to also explore various innovative ways to increase production and supply of oxygen. Various measures are being undertaken to rapidly increase the availability of cyrogenic tankers through conversion of nitrogen and argon tankers, import and airlifting of tankers as well as manufacturing them, but setting up oxygen plants is essential all district places.
Judicious use of med oxygen vital
The PM stressed on the need to ensure faster transportation of oxygen to states and it was discussed that railways is being used for rapid and non-stop long distance transport of tankers. The medical community also pointed out about the need for judicious use of oxygen and how an audit in some states has decreased oxygen demand without affecting the condition of patients to be done. Oxygen plants are the answer and judicious use of oxygen is the need of the time.
Saleem Hakim
