Referral hospital for paramilitary jawans discharges 224 of 340 patients

On June 8, a Delhi-based retired deputy inspector general (DIG)- rank officer of the Border Security Force (BSF) and his wife, tested positive for Covid-19. When

On June 8, a Delhi-based retired deputy inspector general (DIG)- rank officer of the Border Security Force (BSF) and his wife, tested positive for Covid-19. When the couple’s efforts to get themselves admitted to isolation facilities in government and private hospitals in Delhi proved futile, they contacted the officials at the central armed police forces (CAPF) referral hospital at the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) Lakhnawali camp at Greater Noida. In no time, they were admitted to an isolation ward there and their treatment commenced.

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CAPF inspector general (medical services) Dr Dinesh Chandra Dimri said in pursuance to the instructions of director general Surjit Singh Deswal that all hospitals must help veterans and their dependants, the couple was immediately admitted to the hospital. “While the former BSF DIG had fever, his wife had breathing problems. But, now they are recovering fast,” he said.

Dr Dimri said so far 224 of the 340 CAPF personnel and their dependents have been cured of Covid-19 and discharged from the referral hospital. “The list of discharged patients include 173 personnel from ITBP, 41 from BSF, five from the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), one each from the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), the National Security Guard (NSG), and the National Disaster Response Force, besides two civilians.

The remaining 116 patients, who are still admitted to the isolation facility of the hospital, include 45 from NSG,16 from ITBP, 14 from CRPF, 12 each from CISF and Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB), nine from BSF, four from NDRF, two from National Investigation Agency and one each from Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPRD) and intelligence bureau (IB),” he said.

The IG said of the total 340 patients admitted so far to the referral hospital, no casualty has been reported yet. “Of these patients, 45 had various co-morbidities such as diabetes, hypertension, hypothyroidism and cancer. Our team of doctors, led by Dr Shailendra Kumar, has also treated 12 critical Covid-19 patients successfully,” Dr Dimri said.

Meanwhile, Dr Mukesh Saxena, the CAPF additional director general (medical services), has issued directions regarding various safety measures that must be mandatorily followed by all CAPF staff. “They have been given adequate protective equipments, including PPE kits, N-95 masks and sanitisers, to tackle the pandemic,” he said.