Srinagar: A major health disaster is waiting to happen as SKIMS Medical College Hospital has admitted over 90 percent of Level-1 category patients despite government guidelines to treat such people at COVID Wellness Centres set up in district health centres.
Level 1 category comprise of asymptomatic patients who need to be quarantined in COVID Wellness Centres. Level 2 are those patients who need medical attention in COVID Health Centres. Level 3 patients are those who have a high viral load and need ventilator support.
Chief Secretary BVR Subrahmanyam recently directed for increasing isolation and quarantine beds at the district level. He also called for segregating the patients to avoid any contraction of infection from one category to another.
However, in SKIMS Bemina, 60 patients are currently admitted, of who 50 belong to the Level 1 category.
A doctor told The Kashmir Monitor that maximum COVID patients admitted to the hospital don’t show major symptoms barring few who suffer from moderate to high viral load.
“The patients are showing good signs of recovery. One patient has a high viral load and requires ventilator support. Two other patients have a moderate viral load (level2) and rest are asymptotic who belong to level 1 category,” he said.
The doctor said patients have been referred to SKIMS Bemina by district hospitals.
“We have witnessed maximum referrals for the last one week. More than 30 new COVID-19 positive patients have been admitted to the hospital. They are being constantly monitored by a team of doctors,” he said.
Doctors fear that serious problems could emerge if the guidelines are not followed. “Considering the increase in COVID-19 patients, the hospital might face a problem in admitting Level3 patients when the health institutes are already flooded with Level-1 patients,” they said.
Principal SKIMS Bemina, Dr. Reyaz Ahmad Untoo said most of the people admitted to the hospital are Level-1 patients.
He, however, said that they have designated a separate ward for Level-1 patients in the hospital. “Level-1 patients can slip into the Level 2 category at any time. Besides we have divided patients into two different categories,” he said
