The 10,000-bed Sardar Patel COVID Care Centre and Hospital, inaugurated on July 5 by the Delhi Lieutenant-Governor, which will serve as a major support system in the fight against coronavirus, is massive in size but has been set up at a minimal cost.
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The giant healthcare facility has been set up through the social and the corporate sectors' cooperation through corporate social responsibility (CSR) with the government.
Speaking to IANS, the Additional District Magistrate (South) said, "The District Magistrate had strived to garner support through CSR. For example, Sleepwell has donated pillows and mattresses, and Reliance Foundation, racks to be kept next to beds for patients to keep their belongings and medicines." "Reliance Jio has provided dedicated lease lines for the hospital. We are also getting another lease line from MTNL. Under the CSR initiatives, we have received a lot of things, like the library services, food and vinyl flooring," he said.
The medication, surgical and medical equipments, apart from electricity and air conditioning would involve most of the cost and would be borne by the Delhi government, he said. The facility, which received its first batch of patients on July 5, is not only cost-efficient but has also been set up in record time. "This is a world record. Never in the history such a big hospital has been set up and that too in just 15 days. We had readied the hospital by June 30," he said.
The COVID-19 care centre houses a library, a recreational facility, board games, skipping ropes, etc, for patients, who will be provided five healthy meals a day along with immunity boosting chawanprash, juices and hot kadha. The air conditioned hospital is spread over four blocks, with each block having 2,500 beds. Of the total, 10 percent beds also have oxygen support. The nurses are equipped with tablets to maintain proper database of patients. "We are using information technology and digital modes for better management of data and patient," he said.
Operationally, the centre has been linked to the Deen Dayal Upadhyay (DDU) Hospital and the Madan Mohan Malviya Hospital. The referral tertiary care hospitals are the Lok Nayank Jai Prakash Narayan Hospital and the Rajiv Gandhi Super Speciality Hospital. The Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) will be taking care of the first 2,000 beds with 170 doctors/specialists and over 700 nurses and para-medics. "To house medical and paramedical staff, we have made arrangements with 12 hotels on the Chhatarpur Road. They will be housed as per their ranks," he said.
The facility will function as an isolation centre for mild and asymptomatic COVID-19 patients. It has been equipped with full oxygen support, but no ventilators. "If the condition of a patient deteriorates and he/she requires proper medical support, then we have tieup with the Safdarjung Hospital and the DDU Hospital," he said.
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