KOCHI: With a strength of 1,940 ICU beds in 200 hospitals run by the Catholic Church across Kerala, the Catholic Health Association of India (CHAI), has offered help to the state government.
According to Fr Simon Pallupetta, executive director of CHAI, altogether from 200 hospitals, they have a strength of 15,100 hospital beds, which will be of use for the state government for converting them to isolation wards or observation centres.
“The Church has three medical college hospitals in Kerala and the government can make use of any of the facilities available with us. The only suggestion we keep in front of the government is that when they select any hospital we want them to use them fully for treating Covid cases so that we can shift the patients undergoing treatment in these hospitals to other hospitals,” said Fr Pallupetta.Kerala Catholic Bishops Council president Cardinal George Alencherry had told Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan that the facilities of hospitals under the Catholic Church can be used for the care of Coronavirus patients.