PM-initiated 500-bed Covid care hospital in Patna opens to public

The PM had directed the ministry of home affairs to establish 500-bed hospitals at Patna and Muzaffarpur, considering the gravity of the Covid-19 situation in Bihar

The 500-bed makeshift Covid Care Hospital at Bihta in Patna, funded under the PM CARES (Prime Minister’s Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency situations), was opened to public on Monday afternoon.

The hospital includes 125 ICU (intensive care unit) beds with ventilators, monitors; and 375 normal beds. (Santosh Kumar/HT Photo)

Union minister of state for home affairs, Nityanand Rai, inaugurated the hospital in presence of Bihar health minister Mangal Pandey.

“PM-CARES Fund Trust has decided to allocate funds for fight against COVID-19 by way of establishment of 500-bed COVID-19 makeshift hospitals at Patna and Muzaffarpur, Bihar, by DRDO. This will go a long way in improving COVID care in Bihar,” PMO India tweeted.

Earlier, in mid-July, a Central team had cautioned the state on hospital infrastructure and suggested setting up temporary field hospitals, taking into consideration the case growth trajectory for at least the next two months.

“A similar hospital at Muzaffarpur is expected to be ready by August 30,” said Bihar’s principal secretary, health, Pratyaya Amrit.

The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), which was entrusted with the project, has provided hospital infrastructure, which includes 125 ICU (intensive care unit) beds with ventilators, monitors; and 375 normal beds. Centralised piped oxygen supply will be available for each bed.

“The state government has provided nurses, free uninterrupted water and power supply, air conditioners in 25 rooms with soft furnishing, security arrangements and fire tenders with crew,” said Amrit.

The hospital will be equipped with CCTV surveillance system. DRDO has also made pharmacy, medical pathology laboratory, catering, laundry and ambulance services available. All services will be free, the communique said.

The DRDO will also take care of the computerised hospital management system, providing personal protective equipment (PPE) kits and sanitiser, housekeeping services, consumable items, furniture and soft furnishing, such as bed sheets, pillows, pillow covers, blankets, towels, etc. It will also provide maintenance staff for specialised services like electrical works, air conditioning, operating diesel generator sets, etc., the communique added.

The PM had directed the Ministry of Home Affairs to establish 500-bed hospitals at Patna and Muzaffarpur, considering the gravity of the Covid-19 situation in Bihar. The MHA approached the DRDO to make one each in Patna and Muzaffarpur along the same lines as the 1,000-bed Sardar Vallabhai Patel makeshift Covid hospital in Delhi.

As on Monday, Bihar reported a total 1,23,383 Covid-19 cases with 627 deaths. Patna alone reported 19,112 cases and 124 deaths, the highest in Bihar. Muzaffarpur came next with 5,298 cases and 25 deaths.

The Central team had also advised the state to increase the number of all health personnel on the front-lines, ensure infection prevention practices and proper roster system for patient management, besides making available sufficient logistics and a regular supply of oxygen in all Covid-19 hospitals.

On July 23, Bihar health secretary Lokesh Kumar Singh had said that of the 40,000 beds designated for district Covid care centres (for mildly symptomatic or asymptomatic Covid-19 patients), 20,000 beds had been readied. The department was then in the process of arranging for 4,000 additional beds in dedicated Covid health centres in districts for patients with mild-to-moderate cases, besides increasing 3,500 beds (against an existing 2,500 approx. then) for the third level at medical college hospitals, which are for severe and critical cases.

The health department Monday did not share an update on the availability of beds for Covid patients and the occupancy .