Protocol, dedication, team work: What helped a small Gzb CHC achieve 84% Covid recovery rate

Since it started functioning as an L1 category Covid hospital in the last week of March, the CHC has successfully treated 27 of 32 patients admitted so far.

A small 30-bed Community Health Centre (CHC) in Muradnagar, which had only cared for general OPD patients from different rural areas of Ghaizabad till March 25, now has the rare distinction of discharging 84% of its Covid-19 patients, with none requiring special care.

The CHC so far has dealt with Covid-19 positive patients linked to the Delhi religious congregation, Noida based company Ceasefire and others who came from Indirapuram, Vasundhara, Sahibabad etc. (AP)

Since it started functioning as an L1 category Covid hospital in the last week of March, the CHC has successfully treated 27 of 32 patients admitted so far. All the patients, who were discharged upon full recovery, were stable and none had to be shifted to an L2 or L3 Covid facility, said doctors at the facility, which is manned by two teams of 25 each, including six doctors, six nurses, six cleaning staff, two lab technicians, three ward boys and two pharmacists.

“This recovery rate would not been possible without the dedication, team work and sacrifice of the staff. Minute precautions and all safety and health protocols have to be followed. Every staff member adapted. Finally, it is not about whether we have small infrastructure but it is more about our will which motivates us to do what we are doing today,” said hospital superintendent Dr GP Mathuria, who is leading the Covid-19 teams, and is a resident of Delhi but has been staying in the CHC campus, which has four flats for doctors and 28 for non-officer level staff.

Detailing the training the teams got—how to wear and safely remove PPE kits; basics of infection prevention; information about the disease; prevention and patient management—Dr Davi Lal, the physician of the first Covid-19 team at the CHC, said that not only was the staff trained before the facility was opened for Covid-19 patients, some infrastructure changes were also made to the facility as per protocol.

“All 30 beds were rearranged. Twelve were spread out on the ground floor, 16 on 1st floor and two in another room to ensure a 1.5-metre distance is maintained. The main entrance was restricted only for staff and the rear entrance was reserved for movement of patients. We switched off all ACs and all department rooms were shut. Ten CCTVs were installed and separate biomedical waste room was created for disposal of used PPE kits, masks etc,” said Dr Davi Lal, who was part of the team that initially got trained in protocols and later trained the staff.

“It is because of team efforts that none of our Covid-19 positive patients were ever needed to be referred to a higher facility. This is the biggest achievement our team from small CHC has till date,” the doctor added.

“I have not met my 8-year-old son for over one month, ever since I left him at my mother’s house in Patla near Niwari; my husband is an Indian army and is posted in Jammu,” Parul Naresh, one of the staff nurse at the CHC, said, adding that during the initial training we were told that we will be staying away from family members as we perform duties in a highly contaminated zone.

“I speak to my son only through mobile phone and I last saw my husband on Holi. Initially, I was afraid of dealing with Covid-19 patients but sensed that they too were afraid about the virus. After 2-3 days, the fear melted away and our entire team joined hands to treat patients,” she said.

The CHC so far has dealt with Covid-19 positive patients linked to the Delhi religious congregation, Noida based company Ceasefire and others who came from Indirapuram, Vasundhara, Sahibabad etc.

Basanti Pujan, another staff nurse who is a part of the Covid team, said that though her family lives in the staff quarters in the same CHC campus, she has not met her children for over one month now. “I left my 3-year-old son and 14-year-old daughter with my husband. I know the Coronavirus situation will last a long time and I may have to stay away from my children, but duty comes first,” she said.

After the first team completed its 15 days on duty, all members were sent to passive quarantine and the second team took over. A third team of another set of 25 members is set to join a few days.

“At CHC, they normally perform small surgeries and deliveries and treating seasonal diseases on routine basis. But the doctors and staff have performed well during Covid duties and treated about 70% Covid-19 symptomatic patients from Ghaziabad. We now have another L1 attached hospital at ESI Hosptial, Sahibabad. It will also start functioning as L1 category hospital,” said Dr NK Gupta, chief medical officer.