COVID-19: BMC says it has a plan to free up more ICU beds

BMC also plans to shift patients to CCC-2 once they are stable

With the number of vacant ICU beds reducing almost daily and COVID-19 infections increasing, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation wants to tweak it's norms of treating and discharging patients admitted to intensive care units. As of now, 40-odd ICU beds are available in the city.

The BMC has decided that instead of waiting for patients' negative reports before shifting them out of ICU, it would move them to a general bed once their condition has stabilised. The civic body had been hearing complaints about patients being kept in ICU beds even after having stabilised, because their negative COVID-19 reports are awaited.

The BMC plans to send a new diktat, asking hospitals and centres to continue patients' treatment in general beds after their vitals have stabilised and doctors have ascertained that they don't need an ICU anymore.

The BMC will soon be linking hospitals to COVID Care Centres-2, which are mainly hotels and empty buildings, where patients are isolated after doctors have attended to them. Hospitals can then shift their stable patients and recovered ICU patients waiting for a negative report to such centres.

Additional Municipal Commissioner Suresh Kakani has confirmed the development. The BMC is expected to prepare a detailed circular, which was not released till the time of going to the press.

The BMC has planned to set up various high dependency units, like a semi-ICU, for critical patients, but in the meantime, it is trying to free up as many ICU beds as possible to ensure the needy get the treatment.