Patients have been hit hard this week due to two bandhs in a gap of two days. Not wanting to take any chances, most patients chose to postpone their hospital visits. Although the staff members, including doctors and paramedics, could make it to their workplaces, patient flow was reduced by nearly 50% in most hospitals, especially in government-run tertiary care centres.
At the Sri Jayadeva Institute of Cardiovascular Research and Sciences, the patient flow in the Out-Patient Department (OPD) was reduced by 50% and admissions by nearly 90% on Friday.
Visits postponed
“While the usual OPD flow is around 1,500, we saw 702 patients on Friday. The number of admissions also reduced from the usual 250 to 23. This is mainly because those coming from other regions of the State postponed their visits,” said C.N. Manjunath, institute director.
At the State-run Kidwai Memorial Institute of Oncology, the number of new cases reduced to 37 from the daily 120. While follow-up cases also came down to 550 on Friday from around 2,000 seen on an average daily, admissions reduced to 53 from the usual over 80, according to hospital authorities.
Admissions down
It was a similar scenario at the hospitals attached to Bangalore Medical College and Research Institute (BMCRI). While the patient flow in Vani Vilas and Minto Ophthalmic hospitals was reduced by 36% and 15% respectively, Victoria hospital saw over a 37% decrease in patient footfall.
“On average, we see 1,210 patients in the OPD at Victoria hospital. Due to the bandh, only 761 patients visited the hospital. Admissions also came down from an average of 125 to 68 on Friday,” said Deepak Shivanna, medical superintendent of Victoria Hospital.
At Bowring and Lady Curzon hospital, the patient flow reduced from the average 1,500 to 552, informed Manoj Kumar H.V., dean and director.
