Manish Sisodia, Delhi’s deputy chief minister, said on Friday that a committee set up by the Delhi government to review cases of Covid-19 patients dying due to oxygen shortages in hospitals will begin working soon, once the file is approved by lieutenant governor (L-G) Anil Baijal.
“In Delhi, during the second wave, we have come across information concerning deaths [that took place] because of oxygen shortage in hospitals, in light of which the Delhi government set up a committee of medical experts… The file concerning setting up the committee has been sent to the office of the lieutenant governor,” said Sisodia in a live streamed video press briefing on Friday
He further said, “As soon as it receives L-G’s approval, the committee will start functioning. The committee is supposed to hold meetings twice every week and review each case. In such cases, relatives of the deceased are entitled to a financial assistance of (up to) ₹5 lakh.”
The government-appointed panel is also tasked with determining the criteria for compensating the families. To be sure, the family of any Delhi resident who dies as a result of Covid-19 is supposed to be compensated with 50,000 under a separate scheme. Any additional compensation will be decided by this panel. According to a government order issued on May 27, a copy of which HT has seen, the compensation can be up to 5 lakh.
“The committee will investigate whether oxygen was used properly in hospitals in accordance with the standards. The committee will investigate the hospital’s efforts to keep sufficient oxygen stock on hand for patients admitted there,” the order stated.
A doctor from Lok Nayak Hospital’s department of medicine and another from anaesthesia serve on the committee, as does an anaesthetist from Lal Bahadur Shastri Hospital, an official from the Directorate General of Health Services, and two heads of private hospitals.
In April and May, at least 32 people died in two city hospitals, ostensibly due to a lack of oxygen.
Twenty patients, the majority of whom were admitted to the intensive care unit at Jaipur Golden Hospital, died around midnight on April 23 when the pressure in the oxygen system dropped due to the hospital’s switch from liquid medical oxygen to oxygen cylinders.
On May 2, twelve more people died in Batra Hospital, including the head of the department of gastroenterology, after the hospital was forced to switch to oxygen cylinders after running out of liquid oxygen for 80 minutes.
