Amid oxygen shortage, Jaipur Golden Hospital denies more admission requests

New Delhi, Apr 25 (PTI) The Jaipur Golden Hospital in Delhi continued to scramble for a continuous oxygen supply and denied admission requests from more patients on Sunday, a day after it reported 20 deaths amid shortage of the life-saving gas.

The hospital currently has around 205 patients, out of which 60 are in a critical condition. Twenty-five patients need high flow oxygen.

"We are having to deny SOS admission requests for COVID patients requiring hospital care," it tweeted. "Erratic oxygen supply means we are struggling to ensure our current patients get the care they need. Ensure Oxygen supply so we can help all Delhiites in need." Around 6 pm, Medical director D K Baluja said he had been assured by officials that a tanker would reach within half an hour.

The number of deaths that "could be linked to oxygen shortage" remains at 20. No more such fatality has been reported since Saturday morning, Baluja said.

Gautam Singh, the head of Shri Ram Singh Hospital and Heart Institute, also posted a video message on social media, requesting an oxygen refill for his 100-bed healthcare facility in east Delhi.

"Friends, we are running short of oxygen. We don't have enough stock to sustain our patients. We have been trying since 4.30 am. Our vehicles went to Bawana, Faridabad, Noida, Greater Noida, but did not get oxygen anywhere," he said in the video.

A visibly emotional Singh said his patients would die if they did not get oxygen in time Meanwhile, Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia urged hospitals not to raise alarms unnecessarily over oxygen shortage and appealed to the media to verify such claims before reporting.

Such acts hamper efforts to provide help to hospitals that really need assistance, Sisodia, who is also the nodal minister for COVID management in Delhi, said. PTI GVS HMB