Negligence in Covid duties will be viewed seriously: Collector Pola Bhaskara

Ongole: Prakasam district collector Dr Pola Bhaskara warned the doctors and medical staff that any negligence in the Covid duties will be viewed seriously and stringent action will be initiated against them.

He inspected the Government General Hospital in Ongole and interacted with the officials, doctors, staff and patients about the services being provided there.

The collector announced that they are maintaining 200 ICU beds in GGH Ongole as per the availability of doctors and technicians and increasing the oxygen beds based on the need. He said that they are trying to provide beds to the Covid patients coming to the hospital, based on the intensity of their condition. He said that the Girijan Bhavan beside the hospital is also made part of the hospital and using the social empowerment centre, senior residents' quarters also for beds. He said that they are trying to take buildings surrounding GGH, where they can fit about 50 beds, also as part of the beds and already asked the management of Bhashyam School to hand over the building to set up another 100 beds in it.

Bhaskara said that they are appointing doctors, nursing staff and other workers to provide Covid services to the patients in the hospitals. He said that they appointed the joint collector K Krishnaveni as in-charge officer for GGH Ongole to focus on food, sanitation, admissions and patient care. He announced that they have already appointed in-charge officers for the Covid care centres and there will be another 1,500 beds available by the time they start functioning.

He advised the public not to panic and asked them to stay in the home isolation if there have mild symptoms. He warned that stringent action will be taken on the doctors who are not on duty as per the roster. He said that action will be taken on the doctors who went on leave without permission when the Covid cases are increasing. He said that vaccination is a continuous process and they are giving priority to the people who required taking the second dose and then giving the first dose to others.

After the visit of the collector a 20KL (20 Ton) oxygen tanker reached GGH Ongole with police security and filled the oxygen storage tanks in the hospital. Following the orders of the SP Siddharth Kaushal, J Panguluru SI and staff helped the oxygen tanker, which broke down at Bollapalli toll-plaza at 4 am, to get repaired in a short time and escorted it to the hospital and fill the tanks to make sure oxygen available for treatment.