LAHORE: The Punjab government seems to be indifferent to the unending sufferings of the Covid-19 critical patients in the provincial capital where the bed occupancy in both the public and private sector hospitals has reached an alarming proportion.

According to the emerging reports, the dearth of bed for the hospitals of the city is one of the leading factors behind massive surge in Covid death rate in the city recently.

According to the information gleaned from the government as well as private hospitals in the city, most of the critical patients were facing the issue of ‘non-availability of the beds’.

Official figures still show availability

As per the official data, the bed occupancy rate in the high dependency units (HDUs) of the private hospitals in Lahore has reached 70.8 percent, while in the intensive care units (ICUs) it was 86.8pc.

However, a majority of the attendants of critical patients present a gloomy picture, complaining of non-availability of beds in government and private hospitals of the city.

According to Ajmal, son of an elderly patient, Mohammad Hakim of Wapda Town, “I took my father to a newly constructed leading private hospital in Johar Town after being refused admission to seven state-run hospitals in the city because bed occupancy. But, the private hospital staff also refused to admit him for the same reason.”

He said he desperately made calls to four leading private hospitals in the city located on Ferozepur Road, Canal Road, Jail Road and in Defence, but got the same reply “though I was ready to pay for expensive treatment that ranged between Rs100,000 and Rs120,000 per day as ICU charges,” Mr Ajmal said.

Finally, he said, a bed was arranged for the patient with the help of some of his friends after a day in a private hospital on Ferozepur Road, where the per day ICU charges were Rs40,000.

“The doctors at the hospital told me that my father had developed lungs complications for reaching the ICU too late,” he said, lamented that now his father was struggling for life on ventilator support there.

Another patient, Abul Razaq (61), was refused admission to the Pakistan Kidney and Liver Institute two days back despite his both lungs having over 60 per cent Covid infection, because of non-availability of bed. He was referred to the Jinnah Hospital after being refused admission to the Sir Ganga Ram Hospital for the same reason.

“I took my elder brother to five government hospitals where he could not get a bed,” said Sajjad of Shadbagh, who was attending his brother Abdul Razzaq, a retired government employee, who succumbed to the virus at a private hospital for delayed treatment.

Despite such an alarming situation, the government instead of expanding the bed capacity of the city’s hospitals or ensuring the same at the private health facilities, seemed to be waiting for a miracle to happen.

The latest official data, however, showed that of the total 807 HDU beds at the 21 state-run hospitals in the city, 378 were still lying vacant, while out of 229 beds with ventilators facility, 76 were not occupied yet.

However, the disparity between the on-ground situation and the official data has exposed the tall claims of the health authorities with regard to the management of critical Covid patients in Lahore.

Published in Dawn, April 4th, 2021