BENGALURU: The doctor fraternity is once again on the brink with the surge in Covid cases. Though the State Government is expecting the peak of the second wave in the first week of May, the government facilities are already full.
“It’s been a terribly hectic year for us. Just when doctors and nurses were recovering from Covid fatigue, we have been hit by another surge. We are dreading the peak,” said Dr Narendra Narayana of a reputed government hospital in Bengaluru.
Though the doctors are physically better prepared this time by getting themselves vaccinated and equipped with the knowledge to handle patients, they are not mentally prepared, he said. Beds at both Victoria and Bowring hospitals are running full. Dean and director of Bowring and Lady Curzon Hospital Dr Manoj Kumar HV said, “We have the capacity of 160 beds, but as of Friday we had 184 patients.
We have trained healthcare workers on treating the patients and we are able to handle the situation better than the last wave.” But the hospital may face a problem if the numbers increase further. In which case, they have to stop seeing non-Covid patients, he added Agreeing, doctors at Victoria Hospital said that attending to both Covid and non-Covid patients is stressing them.
“We are struggling as many of our doctors are going through emotional fatigue. We are doing everything we can, but our mental strength has definitely come down as compared to last year,” said a senior doctor.
Some doctors are angry with the people and government. “When we step out of the hospital, we see hundreds of people recklessly partying at pubs, gathering at cinema halls, rallies, protests etc and many don’t even wear masks.
Because of this callousness, they end up contracting the virus and triggering the surge,” explained a senior consultant from a government hospital. She said the State Government is not implementing the restrictions strictly and the night curfew may not help much. “It is unfortunate that such surges happen. Patients end up in hospitals late and then blame doctors,” said Dr Gopikrishna V, consultant physician at a Sevakshetra Hospital in Jayanagar.