Lok Nayak hospital OPDs reopened, rapid tests must for all patients

The 2,000-bed hospital had been converted into a dedicated hospital for the treatment of Covid-19 patients in March last year.

The Delhi government-run Lok Nayak hospital has reopened its outpatient clinics for non-Covid patients after nine months, with all those coming in being tested for the coronavirus disease using a rapid antigen kit before being allowed inside.

The hospital, which used to see around 9,000 patients a day in its outpatient clinic before the onset of the pandemic, was asked to re-start non-Covid services on half its beds at the beginning of the year. (Biplov Bhuyan/HT PHOTO)

The 2,000-bed hospital had been converted into a dedicated hospital for the treatment of Covid-19 patients in March last year.

The hospital, which used to see around 9,000 patients a day in its outpatient clinic before the onset of the pandemic, was asked to re-start non-Covid services on half its beds at the beginning of the year.

With the number of Covid-19 cases on the decline for over a month, the government had decided to de-escalate the number of beds earmarked for the treatment of those with the viral infection across 115 hospitals on December 31. The number of beds could go down by around 14,000 across hospitals, from over 18,700 beds the government had reserved when the city saw its third and worst wave of cases in November.

With even the OPD building housing some of the non-ICU beds, the hospital took a few days to put in place protocols to ensure the Covid-19 and non-Covid patients remain in separate areas before the clinics were reopened on Monday.

To maintain social distancing, the hospital has started with clinics of a select few departments, with attendance in each being restricted to 50 persons, as per doctors from the hospital. “However, we probably got around 20 patients on the first day. The number will go up in a week or two as more people come to know that the OPDs have opened. However, we are currently focussing only on the more stable patients, not those who are very sick,” said a senior doctor from the hospital on condition of anonymity.

Admissions of non-Covid patients haven’t started yet, the doctor said.

The hospital currently has a special ward for those who are suspected to have the mutant variant of the virus that was first discovered in the United Kingdom.