Demand for private COVID Care Centres on the rise

Over 50% of beds in hotels that have tied up are occupied

Many patients who are either asymptomatic or have mild symptoms prefer to check into hotels that have tied up with hospitals rather than isolating themselves at home. Less than a week after private COVID-19 care facilities were set up at 12 hotels in Bengaluru, more than 50% of the beds have been filled. As of Wednesday afternoon, 479 out of 917 beds in these hotels were taken.

Several doctors and hotel managements told The Hindu that many patients consider booking rooms a “safer option” especially if they are living with elderly parents, children or pregnant women as they do not want to risk infecting others.

Rajendra Kumar Kataria, senior IAS officer who is in charge of COVID Care Centres, said that these facilities also help keep hospital beds open for patients with severe symptoms and comorbidities. “A majority of the positive patients are asymptomatic and don’t need much medical assistance. They can stay in these centres particularly if they are afraid that their family members may contract the infection from them,” he said.

Patients are given three meals as well as snacks in the evening, said P.C. Rao, president of Bruhat Bangalore Hotels’ Association.

R. Ravindra, Medical Director at Suguna Hospital, said that they have tied up with a hotel close to their hospital to provide medical assistance to patients. “Out of 50 rooms in the hotel, 40 are already filled. While doctors visit them once a day, nurses visit them twice a day and are available on call. The patients are given pulse oximeters and thermometers and told to check their temperature and oxygen saturation as well as pulse levels,” he said.

Sustainable?

However, despite the demand, hospitals that are already facing a shortage of doctors, nurses, and ward boys say that they may find it difficult to sustain this arrangement or expand and tie up with more hotels.

A doctor working with a private hospital said it was important for people to remain in isolation in their hotel rooms for the required duration. “There are some people who get bored and homesick and end up returning home even though they had signed up for 10 days. We want to discuss this with the government to ensure that patients remain in the hotel rooms for at least a week,” said the doctor.

Community-led centres

The State government has also persuaded apartments and Residents Welfare Associations to set up COVID Care Centres on their premises. “Around five apartments have agreed to set up community-led COVID Care Centres at their club house or vacant flats. We have had a meeting with the apartment federation and more apartments will sign up for this. We have convinced them and told them that it will be easy for them to monitor the positive patients from their apartments if they are at one location,” said Mr. Kataria.