A liquefied oxygen supply project was inaugurated in Wenlock Hospital here on Friday. Its main advantage is that it will ensure continuous supply of oxygen to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and the wards, said P. Saroja, Resident Medical Officer (RMO), Wenlock Hospital. It costs one-third lesser than the current system, she said. The new system, in which the gas would be supplied through pipes, would be totally automated.
With the pipeline supply, liquefied oxygen from the plant will reach the wards directly. The Indian Overseas Bank had donated Rs. 5 lakh for the pipeline part of the liquefied oxygen plant. The plant would be installed atop pillars, which required civil work estimated at Rs. 8.45 lakh. This amount was sourced from the hospital's Arogya Raksha Samithi fund. The civil work would take two months to be completed. After that, the plant could be installed and start functioning within 10 days. It would be ready within three months, Dr. Saroja said.
The hospital used up to 9,000 oxygen cylinders estimated at Rs. 2 lakh a month. The existing supplier charged Rs. 27 per cubic metre and Rs. 7 for transportation. With the new system, it would cost Rs. 17 per cubic metre and Rs. 4.50 for transportation, sources in the hospital said.
