Rajiv Gandhi hospital discharges 1,000th patient, increases ICU beds to 200

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia visited the hospital on Monday evening in a bid to observe a landmark at the hospital – the release of the 1,000th Covid-19 patient, who has recovered from the viral infection.

Rajiv Gandhi Super Speciality Hospital (RGSSH) in Tahirpur, the second healthcare facility in the national capital to start dedicated care of coronavirus disease (Covid-19) patients, has increased its intensive care unit (ICU) beds to 200 -- an over four-fold increase from 45 that it previously had.

Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal speaks with a person via video call during a visit to the Rajiv Gandhi Super Specialty Hospital at Dilshad Garden, in New Delhi. (Sonu Mehta/HT PHOTO)

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia visited the hospital on Monday evening in a bid to observe a landmark at the hospital – the release of the 1,000th Covid-19 patient, who has recovered from the viral infection.

“Now, we have given Dr (BL) Sherwal, director, RGSSH, a new target of increasing the ICU beds to 500,” said Kejriwal.

This is in line with the Delhi government’s policy to increase ICU beds across the city, even as nearly 10,000 non-ICU beds across hospitals are lying vacant.

Delhi Covid-19 application showed that around 60% of ICU beds are being occupied, including both with and without ventilators.

The 1,000th patient to be discharged was a senior nursing officer from Delhi-government-run Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel hospital in East Patel Nagar. Her husband, who works in the public works department (PWD) of Maulana Azad Medical College (MAMC) and associated with Lok Nayak Hospital, Delhi’s biggest Covid-19 facility, was also discharged along with her.

Though three others from the family had contracted SARS-CoV-2, which causes the disease, they are all under home isolation.

In June, Delhi health minister Satyendra Kumar Jain was initially admitted to RGSSH after he showed symptoms for Covid-19, but was later shifted to Max Hospital in Saket for convalescent plasma therapy.

Now, RGSSH has started administering convalescent plasma therapy to at least 200 patients under a trial being headed by the Institute of Liver and Biliary Sciences, which houses the country’s first plasma bank.

The hospital has also started a video calling facility to let families communicate with patients.

On Monday, Lok Nayak Hospital also ramped up its ventilator bed capacity to 180 from 60.