MYSURU: While frantic calls for ventilator beds continue to echo in Mysuru, Congress MLAs pointed out that ventilators supplied last year to their taluks are lying unused due to non-availability of staff. HD Kote MLA Anil Chikkamadu and Hunsur MLA H P Manjunath said they had brought the issue to the notice of the authorities on several occassions, especially to Health Minister Dr K Sudhakar recently, but in vain.
Speaking to reporters after launching the Congress Covid war room in the district, Chikkamadu said that five ventilators were lying unused at the taluk hospital, at a time when patients are being rushed to Mysuru in need of such beds. “We’re told they (the ventilators) can only be used after qualified hands are recruited, but when are we going to recruit them? We need to put in all our efforts and not be complacent.
Similarly, we asked for physicians, but even this request is pending,” he said. Hunsur MLA Manjunath said that not only the ventilators, but also the CT scan machine that the taluk hospital recently procured is lying unused due to staff shortage.
“We see severe shortage of nurses and doctors. As much as 19 of our senior nurses have been promoted to Mysuru, and on top of that unlike the last wave where cases were largely confined to towns, we are seeing more number of cases in villages. We have 14 villages turned into containment zones,” said Manjunath. Narasimharaja MLA Tanveer Sait said that instead of merely setting up beds, the government should ensure that facilities like availability of oxygen and drugs are taken care of.