ROURKELA: THE proposed plasma bank at Ispat General Hospital (IGH) here is all set to be made operational to treat critically-ill Covid-19 patients.Sundargarh Collector Nikhil Pawan Kalyan said, “The plasma bank would made functional in a day or two. We have identified Covid survivors who are willing to donate plasma.”
Besides, the administration also plans to enhance ICU bed strength as mounting cases in Rourkela threatens to overwhelm the 200-bed Hi-Tech Covid-19 Hospital.
Till Thursday, the Steel City alone accounted for 845 of the total 1,298 positive cases reported from Sundargarh district. The Collector said more ICU beds are being added to the existing bed count.
Meanwhile, the district has taken rapid strides in augmenting testing capacity. Sundargarh, which initially saw daily testing of 30 samples, has been able to test more than 700 swab samples through RT-PCR, TruNat and rapid antigen methods over the last few days. Swab collection is being carried out at the block level while rapid antigen test is performed at various temporary medical camps (TMCs).
Commissioner of Rourkela Municipal Corporation (RMC) Dibyajyoti Parida said the BPUT Covid care centre has 780 beds. Work is underway to ready another 1,000 beds in five buildings.There are 400 beds in different Covid care homes and 500 beds in various TMCs under RMC limits. Parida said door-to-door survey is underway in 200 slums and congested pockets of the city.
Meanwhile, Sundargarh reported 74 new Covid-19 cases on Thursday. Of the total 1,298 cases in the district, 778 have recovered and 511 are active. So far, nine deaths have been reported in the district.