UDAYAPUR, MAY 11

At a time when COVID-19 patients have been dying for want of ventilators, the ventilators installed in Udayapur District Hospital a year ago have been lying unused due to lack of manpower.

Province 1 government had installed two ventilators in the district hospital.

The five beds with ventilators and ICU service could not come into operation in the hospital.

The hospital is now compelled to refer COVID patients to another health facility after the ventilators there were rendered useless due to lack of experts.

As many as 286 persons have tested positive for the coronavirus in Udayapur till date. According to the hospital, two critical COVID patients were referred to another health facility as the ventilators at the hospital could not be used.

The hospital added that the two patients, who needed the ventilators, were receiving treatment in B and C Hospital, Birtamod, Jhapa and Biratnagar-based Birat Medical College.

COVID patients in Udayapur are facing problems as they have been deprived of ventilator support due to lack of manpower. The hospital has ICU service along with ventilator, but lacks experts.

Medical Superintendent of the district hospital Dr Jib Narayan Mandal said the equipment was yet to come into operation due to lack of experts. 'We had requested the federal and province governments for help to bring into operation the ICU and ventilator service, but in vain,' he added.

Mandal said that COVID cases were increasing and there was no alternative but to send critical patients to another health facility. He further said that no authority concerned had paid attention to the problem.

The ICU beds, along with the ventilator service, were established for the first time in Udayapur District Health Office a year ago. Chief of Udayapur District Coordination Committee,Khadga Bahadur Darnal said that his office had urged the central and provincial governments to provide experts to operate the service.

'The authority concerned has paid no attention despite our frequent requests,' he said.

A version of this article appears in the print on May 12, 2021, of The Himalayan Times.