KASARAGOD: With more than 150 cases and multiple deaths being reported on an average every day in Kasaragod, the health care infrastructure is bursting at the seams.
District health officials said the government has made it clear that it is not in a position to ramp up the infrastructure or send the much-needed reinforcement of human resources.
"We are forced to resort to jugglery," said a senior health official. To take on the immediate challenge of the rising number of COVID cases and deaths -- 2,718 cases in 17 days and 62 deaths -- officials are converting the District Hospital to an exclusive COVID Hospital. The first casualty of the move would be the various specialist services provided at the hospital -- ranging from cancer care and dialysis to orthopaedics and antenatal care.
To be sure, the District Hospital is the only government-run hospital providing secondary health care services in Kasaragod. "But we have no choice. If we have to curb the COVID deaths, our specialist doctors in District Hospital will have to take up the responsibility," said the top officials.
'COVID Hospital or COVID Monument'
But the bigger question is why is the government converting the District Hospital to COVID Hospital when Kasaragod has an 'advanced' COVID Hospital run from the Medical College building at Ukkinadka, asked a senior doctor. On top of it, the Tata Group built a 550-bed COVID Hospital at Thekkil on September 9. "Is it a COVID monument?" he said.
The answers to the questions expose the gap between the government's words and deeds. The Tata Group built the 81,000sq ft hospital in five months and handed over the key to the government at a much-celebrated function on September 9. Since then, the health department submitted two proposals to the government to launch the hospital. "Both the proposals were rejected by the government, perhaps for the lack of funds," said the official.
Now, the government has asked the District Health Service to start a COVID First-Line Treatment Centre (CFLTC) at the Tata Hospital, built at a cost of Rs 60 crore. Doctors said CFLTCs was just observation centres with minimal staff and no patients with serious conditions were admitted there. "Moreover, CFLTCs have become redundant with asymptomatic patients and those with mild symptoms opting to stay at home," said a doctor.
Since the district started the 'stay at home' option for patients on August 10, 5,360 persons tested positive for COVID. Among them, 2,207 patients, or 41% of the patients opted to stay at home. Till Friday, 1,367 patients have recovered and there are 837 active patients at home. "What we need is a facility for critical patients and not a building to accommodate asymptomatic patients," said the doctor cited above. Kasaragod MLA N A Nellikkunnu was livid at the gross waste of resources.
"The decision to run Tata's hospital as a CFLTC dashes all over hopes. If the government did not have the resources to establish the hospital, it could have asked the Tata Group to invest the money at Ukkinadka and made the COVID Hospital better," he said.
Ukkinadka hospital
The COVID Hospital set up at the Medical College Building at Ukkinadka was one of the highlights of the Pinarayi Vijayan-led LDF government's fight against COVID. It was set up in four days in April. But in six months, it has been reduced to another glorified CFLTC. The chief minister said 273 posts were created for the hospital, but the government has given standing instruction that only half of the posts should be filled. In that, only around 40% or around 50 staff have joined.
The newly appointed staff at Ukkinadka have not got their salaries for the past four months "because of technical reasons". Ironically, most of the doctors posted in the hospital are from non-clinical verticals such as microbiologist, pathology, blood bank, and community medicines. "These doctors come into play only when the medical college starts functioning. What we need now are clinical doctors such as physicians, pulmonologists (lung specialists), and anaesthetists for critical care," said a senior health official.
The hospital has just one physician and the ICU has not yet started functioning, said Mahin Kelot, an IUML leader from Badiadka, where the medical college is set up. "So whenever there is a patient who needs critical care, he will be referred to Pariyaram," he said. Now, Kozhikode Medical College has sent five senior medical residents. Though the hospital has 200 beds, only around 45 patients are admitted. The hospital was set up in the Academic Block with no ramp or lift.
So patients cannot be admitted on the third floor. Also, a lot of customisation was required to set up the ICU in the Biochemistry Lab. The work on the actual Hospital Block has restarted only this week, so Kasaragod Medical College will remain the long pipeline. "That's why we decided to convert the District Hospital to a COVID Hospital," said the senior health official.
DH services to be reduced to OP consultation
Kasaragod: District medical officer Dr A V Ramdas said all the important services of the District Hospital will be shifted to various other locations so that patients are not affected. The antenatal wing will be shifted to Surgicare Hospital in Kanhangad, he said. "Patients will have access to our doctors, nurses and medicines free of cost," he said. The cancer ward and paediatric ophthalmology would be shifted to the Nileshwar Taluk Hospital, he said. The out-patient (OP) wing of the orthopaedic department and ENT would be set up at Anandasharamam, he said. The OP wings of Surgery and Ophthalmology would be moved to the Community Health Centre at Periya. Several doctors said they were not happy with the decision to scale down the District Hospital's services to out-patient consultations. "It is as if non-COVID patients have no value," said a doctor.