Floods loom over hospitals; patients moved to upper floors

Srinagar, Aug 27: The surging Jhelum River cast a shadow of flood over hospitals located on its banks and in the basins of its flood channels. The administrations of these tertiary care health facilities moved their patients and equipment to the first floors of the buildings as a precautionary measure.

Contingency plans and teams were also formulated as water levels kept increasing throughout Wednesday.

At Lal Ded Hospital, Wazir Bagh, Medical Superintendent Dr Muzaffar Jan and his team examined the back side of one of the hospital building.

The water levels appeared nearly 4 feet below the hospital level.

However, the Medical Superintendent said, all the patients had been moved to safety.

“We have expecting mothers, mothers who have given birth, and other patients here. We cannot wait and watch. We need to act in advance,” he said.

Dr Jan said 80 patients were moved from the ground floor to the first floor.

He said all the patients had been adjusted, while the Neonatal ICU was already located on the first floor.

“Our equipment and oxygen plant are already above the Highest Flood Level (HFL) of 2014 now,” the Medical Superintendent said.

At Bone and Joint Hospital, Barzulla, the new World Bank-funded building has become a saviour.

The severely space-constrained hospital has utilised the bed capacity of the new building to admit patients.

The Medical Superintendent of the Hospital, Dr Aijaz Ahmed, said the operation theatre of the new block of Bone and Joint Hospital had been put into operation.

“We have moved our equipment to safe levels and an emergency team has been deputed at the hospital to cater to any need that may arise in view of the flood situation,” he said.

At SKIMS Medical College Hospital, Bemina, a control room stands established, the Medical Superintendent, Dr Shifa Deva, told Greater Kashmir.

She said that, though the hospital was at a low level and the space was limited, the administration had created a route and location plan for patients.

“We will move the patients in case the water crosses over the mark and floods the hospital,” she said.

Despite anxiousness regarding the increasing water levels, patient flow to hospitals remained steady throughout the day.

The administration of the hospitals said that the OPD and other services functioned as normal.

They have advised people to seek specialty medical facilities on a need basis.

“In case anyone has problems accessing services, we have established control rooms in hospitals,” the administration said.

Meanwhile, Minister for Health and Medical Education, Sakina Itoo, visited Bone and Joint Hospital and Lal Ded Hospital on Wednesday to take stock of the preparedness.