Delhi govt may start taking over private hospitals for treating Covid patients

The direction was issued during a review meeting on Saturday and an identification process is underway, an official in Delhi chief minister’s office confirmed.

Delhi Lieutenant Governor (L-G) Anil Baijal has directed the state health department , as part of a contingency plan, to identify private hospitals which can be taken over by the government ‘if needed’, in light of the increasing number of Covid-19 cases in the Capital, senior officials said on Sunday.

Doctors check patients for symptoms of coronavirus before they are allowed to enter the main building at Maulana Azad Hospital in New Delhi, India, on Wednesday. (Sanchit Khanna/HT PHOTO)

The direction was issued during a review meeting on Saturday and an identification process is underway, an official in Delhi chief minister’s office confirmed.

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A senior officer in L-G’s office said, “It is a contingency plan. In government hospitals, treatment for patients suffering from diseases other than Covid-19 cannot be stopped. In view of this, private hospitals can be engaged for the same. Officials have been asked to prepare a list of private hospitals, that can be taken over if needed.”

Till Sunday evening, Delhi had recorded 503 Covid-19 cases and seven deaths, the government said.

Delhi currently has at least 24 private hospitals which cumulatively offer more than 300 isolation beds for treating Covid-19 patients.

Max hospitals in Saket and Patparganj opened up a total of 40 isolation beds this week, the healthcare group had earlier said in a statement.

On Sunday, a spokesperson of Max Healthcare group told HT: “We are in a position to quickly scale-up the number of beds across our facilities. In fact, the hospital is working towards creating a dedicated Covid-19 hospital if needed.”

A spokesperson of BLK hospital in Rajendra Place said: “We have already streamlined numerous processes, such as isolated designated areas, for first-level the screening process of patients suspected of having the virus. We can scale up our efforts if needed.”

Indraprastha Apollo hospital in South East Delhi’s Sarita Vihar has created a 12-bed isolation facility which is likely to be increased to 30 beds in the coming week, an official said.