Hospital ‘horror’: 13 more patients die at Goa Medical College, oxygen shortage

Panaji: As days passes, the situation is becoming horrific at Goa Medical College and Hospital. The state government informed the Goa bench of the Bombay High Court on Friday, the government-run GMCH recorded 13 more COVID-19 deaths due to a drop in oxygen supply,

In the meantime, some reports alleged that 20 patients died on May 12 over the oxygen crisis.

The Goa government confirmed that 15 coronavirus patients died at the GMCH in the early hours of May 13. Distinctly, earlier this week 26 coronavirus patients admitted to the COVID facility had died due to “logistical issues” related to ‘connecting oxygen cylinders to the manifold (group of large gas cylinders)’.

The Goa bench, comprising of Justices Nitin W Sambre and M S Sonak, was hearing a batch of cases on the current death of coronavirus patients at the GMCH when the state government counsel, Advocate General Davidas Pangam informed the court about the fresh deaths.

Answering the ‘logistical issues’ argument, the bench said, “We expect the State Administration to find out ways and means to overcome these logistical issues, so that, precious life is not lost on account of any deficiencies in the matter of supply of oxygen to patients.”

Distinctly, the Pramod Sawant led government on May 13 had requested the central government to immediately interrupt as Goa was not getting its full allotted daily quota of 11 tonnes of liquid oxygen from Kolhapur in Maharashtra.

“It is an earnest request that we should be given 22 tonne/day in place of 11 MT for at least a week to meet up for the shortfall to stabilise the situation till the time our active cases decline,” Goa’s Principal Secretary Puneet Kumar Goel said in a letter to Additional Secretary in the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) Sumita Dawra.

Vishwajit Rane, Goa Health Minister, had confirmed that 26 COVID-19 patients died at the GMCH in the early hours of Tuesday. Soon after the tragic event, he asked for an investigation by the HC to find out the specific cause.