COVID-19 in-patient numbers are down to fewer than 50 in each of the major government hospitals in the city.
From a time when hospitals ran short of beds for patients in need of oxygen during the peak of the second COVID-19 wave, the number of patients admitted for treatment of COVID-19 has dropped drastically with the gradual fall in fresh cases over the past few months.
Now, the Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital (RGGGH) has a total of 30 patients, who tested positive for COVID-19, and eight with suspected symptoms, who tested negative during admission. In fact, the hospital’s maximum COVID-19 in-patient census was 1,912 during the peak of the second wave of COVID-19. “Our in-patient numbers for COVID-19 has been below 100 for nearly two months. Of the 30 in-patients, 17 are under room air and 13 on oxygen support,” said E. Theranirajan, dean of RGGGH. He added that of the in-patients, majority were unvaccinated.
“We rarely see fully vaccinated persons admitted for treatment,” he said.
The Government Stanley Medical College Hospital has 26 patients with COVID-19. R. Jayanthi, dean of the Government Omandurar Medical College Hospital, said there were 26 patients with COVID-19, apart from 15 who had tested negative and seven patients with severe acute respiratory infection at the hospital.
‘No surge in two months’
“There has been no increase in COVID-19 admissions in the last two months. We are having five to eight admissions per day. It is now observed that those who have received two doses of vaccines have a benign course even if hospitalised, while 95% of intensive care unit (ICU) admissions and those requiring ventilator are persons who have not received even a single dose,” she said.
Nine patients admitted in the ICU were unvaccinated, she pointed out. “Of the 48 in hospital now, 30 are unvaccinated, and three have received a single dose. The remaining 15 are vaccinated,” Dr. Jayanthi said.
At the Government Kilpauk Medical College (KMC) Hospital, there were 12 patients with COVID-19 and 20 persons with suspected symptoms of COVID-19. “Our COVID-19 in-patient census has been below 100 since September 1. Most of them have mild to moderate symptoms, while we see some coming in at late stages of the disease. Most of the persons with moderate to severe disease are unvaccinated and have co-morbidities such as diabetes and hypertension,” said R. Shanthimalar, KMC dean.
The hospital has slowly reduced the number of beds allocated for COVID-19 due to the increase in non-COVID-19 cases, she added.
Only the stand-alone 750-bedded COVID-19 hospital, the Government Corona Hospital in Guindy, has 130 patients.
K. Narayanasamy, hospital director, said most of the admissions were referrals from neighbouring districts and other parts of the State, including Salem and Dindigul.
Dr. Jayanthi added that despite the low admission figures, there was no room for complacency.
“We cannot let our guards down because the census is negligible. We definitely need people to follow all COVID-19 protocols and get vaccinated,” she said.
