No doctors to man 125-bed Covid care centre at Mulund

Plan to expand another centre on hold too

With the number of Covid-19 cases starting to increase exponentially, the state government and BMC have been racing against time to set up isolation facilities - termed Covid care centres - for those who are asymptomatic or have mild symptoms. However, a major bottleneck in opening these centres is a lack of doctors. A 125- bed isolation centre at the Mulund octroi naka has been ready since May 20 but is yet to open because there are no doctors to man it. The BMC has also been forced to shelve a plan to add 100 beds to another isolation centre - at Mithagar Municipal School, Mulund - because of a severe shortage of doctors.

Mihir Kotecha, BJP MLA from Mulund, said, “We need 10 more doctors for the facility at Mulund. Once we get them we will open the isolation centre. We are appealing to all doctors to please help the BMC in treating patients. These doctors will work in three shifts and will be given all the required protective equipment.”

Click here for latest updates on the coronavirus pandemic

The centre at Mithaghar school was set up early last month. As the number of patients increased, so did the range of facilities. The centre now has 100 beds - of which 12 are ICU beds - oxygen cylinders, four dialysis machines and two ventilators; almost everything a hospital would have, save for an operation theatre. A BMC official said that since the centre is now full, the civic body wants to set up 100 more beds there. However, the shortage of doctors means it is unable to do so.

Once local trains start, hospitals can start to work at full capacitySenior member of state’s Covid-19 task force

Kishore Gandhi, assistant municipal commissioner, T Ward, said, “Our centre at Mithaghar Municipal School is almost full. If we get more doctors, we can increase capacity. We are looking for doctors and nurses. We also need at least eight doctors and 10 nurses to run the centre at the octroi naka. We appeal to all doctors to come forward.”

Meanwhile, a senior member of the state’s Covid-19 task force said that most hospitals were operating with just one-sixth of their employees, with many people unable to travel to work because of the lack of public transport, especially trains. “Most hospital workers live in the far suburbs. They can’t travel by bus and need local trains. Once local trains start, hospitals can start to work at full capacity. We have already told this to the state government,” the member said.

The state government has thus requested the railway board and railway ministry to restart local trains so that the BMC’s emergency workers, doctors, paramedics, police, and those who work at chemists and grocery stores can travel for work with minimal hassle.

Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray has also requested Prime Minister Narendra Modi to restart Mumbai’s local trains for those providing essential services. A statement issued by the Chief Minister’s Office quoted him as saying: “The suburban railway services should be started and it should be only for the employees working in the essential sectors. They can be allowed to board locals after checking their identity cards.”

In photos: In and around Mumbai during lockdown