Mumbai has 535 intensive care unit (ICU) beds for COVID-19 patients, too low for the estimated patients who become critical due to the SARS CoV-2 infection. Experts said anywhere between 3% and 5% patients require critical care. Going by this number and the city’s currently active cases, 500 to 800 ICU beds are needed to cater to all the patients.
There are nearly 16,800 active cases in Mumbai. Every day, there are accounts from relatives and friends about patients deteriorating or dying after waiting to get ICU beds. “ICU beds are crucial to bring down the mortality rate,” said Dr. Jalil Parkar from Lilavati Hospital.
“We are talking about people with severe respiratory distress, those who would require constant monitoring of all vitals on a monitor or someone requiring a cardiac shock for revival. If such patients are not in the ICU, they are simply going to succumb,” Dr. Parkar said.
Challenge for hospitals
A crucial challenge for hospitals is that patients in ICU require treatment for a longer duration. The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation is now in the process of augmenting ICU beds and it is aiming at the 1,000-mark.
“We have also massively increased the number of beds with oxygen support. Since many COVID-19 patients suffer from oxygen saturation, timely oxygen support has been helpful as the patient does not deteriorate and does not need to be shifted to the ICU,” additional municipal commissioner Suresh Kakani said.
As on Wednesday, he said, 733 COVID-19 patients were critical in the city. This included those in the ICU, on ventilator support or merely on oxygen support. “At least 25 ICU beds were vacant today (Wednesday),” he said.
The jumbo facilities like the one at MMRDA ground in Bandra Kurla Complex, which will open for patients on Friday, will also have some mobile ICU beds. The NSCI Dome in Worli will have 40 modular and 30 mobile ICU beds as well.
