All the beds at the Bheri Hospital in Nepalgunj allocated for COVID-19 patients have been taken within a week.
"We had initially kept 72 beds for COVID-19 and they all are full. We then added 10 more beds but even they are being taken. There is no way more infected patients can be admitted," Medical Superintendent at the hospital Dr Prakash Thapa told Setoapti.
A total of 74 COVD-19 patients are being treated at the hospital now with 42 of them in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and seven on ventilator support. Five of the patients are under 18 years in age.
He added that the hospital lacks adequate human resources as more COVID-19 patients with complex problems arrive. The hospital currently has only one critical care doctor and seven physicians even though the 42 ICU patients require at least five critical care specialists, according to Dr Thapa.
"We can handle even more than 100 COVID-19 patients if they have minor problems but will need more human resources when attending to patients with complex problems," he stated. "We cannot even allocate more beds for COVID-19 patients as we lack human resources."
Infection has been surging in Banke district in recent times like in many other parts of the country. He revealed that patients with milder problems are staying in home isolation and only those with medium and complex problems are being hospitalized.
"The number of COVID-19 patients with complex problems had reached this high in four months last year. But we have reached that in just four days now."
He added that many of the admitted patients need to be put on oxygen and show the same symptoms that those who were infected last year showed.
Gym clubs, theaters and other crowded places have been shut down in Banke due to the rising cases while educational institutions will also be closed from Sunday. The administration is also preparing to shut the Jamuna border point with India.
