With the coronavirus infection spreading fast among the doctors and other healthcare workers a special ward for doctor-patients of COVID-19 has come up in Nizam’s Institute of Medical Sciences (NIMS) with 200 beds.
The ward, first of its kind, maybe in India, will take care of the doctors who contracted the virus while discharging their duties in the government facilities in Hyderabad.
Though there is no precise data on the infection among the medical fraternity, according to media reports, as many as 200 doctors have been home-quarantined as they tested positive.
But, many of them are reportedly favoring institutional quarantine than the home-quarantine because they fear that their staying home might spread the virus among their family members.
On Sunday, around 70 doctors and medical staffers tested positive from various government hospitals in Hyderabad. Though they have been advised home-quarantine, they would be shifted to the new special ward in case any emergency arises. Authorities said about 150 ventilators have also been kept ready in the new ward, said NIMS sources.
Meanwhile, five key departments have already shut shop in the NIMS with 15 doctors and other healthcare workers testing positive yesterday. The departments, which were closed for three days are gastroenterology, surgical gastroenterology, Urology, Surgical Oncology, and Cardiology.
Sources in the NIMS said as many as 200 doctors and other staff members tested positive ever since COVID-19 treatment commenced in the state. And many more are likely to be quarantined as the few more samples are under being diagnosed.
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