GORKHA, June 18: In its bid to ensure regular supply of oxygen to the needy ones in time of treatment, an oxygen plant has been established at Barpak village in Gorkha district.
Chairman of Sulikot rural municipality-2 Lal Bahadur Gurung said that the oxygen mini plant was installed with support from National Innovation Centre to treat the COVID-19 patients from Barpak area.
Gurung shared that the mini plant with the capacity of 70 litres was constructed with the support from Centre.
The oxygen plant is installed at the building of local women’s group located near Barpak Health Post.
With the supply of oxygen from the plant, 12 persons can be treated at a time.
Likewise, a 12-bed isolation facility is also built in the women’s group and the oxygen supply is ensured from the same plant, ward chairman Gurung said.
LAMJUNG, May 23: The district hospital here has established an oxygen plant. The plant was installed at the hospital located at Beshisahar Municipality-8 last night.
Hospital chief Hemanta Shrestha said, "The works on oxygen plant were accomplished in a day. We began it in the afternoon and completed at 10:00 pm. Now, the oxygen would be distributed within two days."
He further said it would be easy to treat COVID-19 patients with the installation of oxygen plant. The materials for the plant had arrived in the district on Saturday morning.
Fifteen cylinders of oxygen are produced by the plant every day. Preparation is underway to supply the oxygen via pipeline to emergency, ICU, isolation, and in-patient ward as well. There are 83 beds in total in the hospital.
However, for now, the oxygen distribution is prioritized to the COVID-19 patients, he added.
Currently, there are 17 COVID-19 patients receiving treatment at the hospital here. It has 25 isolation beds with oxygen facility.
DADELDHURA, May 23: Various social organizations here have begun supplying oxygen to different hospitals in the district. They took the initiative after the hospitals witnessed shortage of oxygen with surge of COVID-19 patients.
The empty oxygen cylinders lying in hospital premises were taken to Nepalgunj and filled up. The organizations then supplied the oxygen cylinders to the health facilities.
Some 60 oxygen cylinders were distributed to the hospitals here in a week, said hospital management committee chair Karunakar Ojha.
Bolanya Thali, Nepal Jaycees, Bhakta BB Helping Hands and Humanity Foundations and other organizations joined the humanitarian campaign.
BHAKTAPUR, May 12: Various hospitals in Bhaktapur district are struggling to save lives of Covid-19 patients without oxygen. In many cases, Covid-19 patients need oxygen support in treatment process. Many hospitals in the district have been flooded with the patients following the second wave of the infection. Without oxygen, many hospitals have refused to admit coronavirus patients.
Bhaktapur Hospital is struggling without oxygen since Thursday night. The supply is yet to be made despite informing about the matter to the Covid-19 Crisis Management Centre (CCMC), the Ministry of Health and the respective province ministry, said the hospital medical superintendent Dr Sumitra Gautam.
Sagarmatha Oxygen Company had been supplying oxygen to the hospital. The hospital got the supply from Janakpur after the Company lacks oxygen. But there is a scarcity of oxygen in Janakpur too and it takes at least two days for the supply to arrive here, thus making the matter worse, said Gautam.
Negligence is the CCMC is to blame for the situation. The CCMC has removed the hospital from the recommendation list for oxygen citing the hospital is provincial level, thus creating the problem, said the hospital administration.
At present, the hospital is providing treatment to 70 Covid-19 patients. It has consumed 200 oxygen cylinders in 24 hours as all coronavirus patients need oxygen support, said Gautam. “We started receiving the supply from Janakpur after the Kathmandu Valley lacks oxygen. However, there is also a lack of oxygen in Janakpur too. The government has asked hospital to run a 70-bed high care unit for coronavirus patients. But there is a lack of oxygen. How can we admit new patients in such situation?.”
“The hospital lacks oxygen. All patients need oxygen support. Lives of patients are at risk. The hospital cannot take responsibility in case of any untoward incident.”
The provision that the CCMC’s recommendation is needed for oxygen has added to the problem of the hospital, she said.
Nepal-Korea Friendship Municipality Hospital run by Madyapurthimi Municipality also lacks oxygen. The hospital has used 70 oxygen cylinders on a daily basis. However, the CCMC has recommended a Kavrepalanchok-based oxygen plant to provide only 10 cylinders to the hospital, thus making the matter worse, said the municipality mayor Madan Sundar Shrestha.
The hospital has six ventilators, five intensive care units, 14 high care units and 18 emergency units. The hospital’s situation reached the stage that mayor Shrestha on Tuesday stepped in to collect oxygen cylinders to save lives of 18 coronavirus patients. He managed the oxygen cylinders from the oxygen plant in Kavrepalanchok after his calls to the CCMC, the Health Ministry, Teku Hospital and various oxygen companies for the same went in vain, said Shrestha. “Fifteen more beds have been added to the hospital following increasing flow of Covid-19 patients. However, these beds have yet to come into operation without oxygen. There is not a situation wherein to admit new patients,” he said.
To ease the matter, the hospital would soon set up an oxygen plant, he said.
Bhaktapur Hospital is struggling without oxygen and many private hospitals are on the verge of a closure as a result, said Krishna Prasad Mijar, chief of the health office, Bhaktapur.
Teaching Hospital in Kathmandu lacks oxygen risking patients’ lives, said Manohar Shrestha, relative of a patient admitted to the hospital. “Doctors at the hospital burst into tears telling that the hospital lacks oxygen. So it is difficult to save lives of patients. We cannot admit new patients in such situation,” he said quoting doctors. The Kathmandu Valley has needed 15,000 liters oxygen on a daily basis against the supply of only 7,000 liters, according to available data. Some days ago, two Covid-19 patients died at Bhaktapur International Hospital apparently due to lack of oxygen.
As a result, the hospital and other Madyapur Hospital, Nagarik Community Hospital, Summit Hospital, Dr Iwamura Memorial Hospital and Siddhi Memorial Hospital have decided not to admit coronavirus patients.
KATHMANDU, May 12: The Nepal Bureau of Standards & Metrology (NBSM) has donated filled oxygen cylinders to Birendra Military Hospital in Chhauni and Balaju oxygen industry (three to hospital, one to industry).
The donated oxygen cylinders were being used by the Bureau, said the Bureau Director General, Bishwo Babu Pudasaini. He urged donation of oxygen cylinders amid the second wave of Covid-19.
As many Covid-19 patients are succumbing to the lack of sufficient oxygen in the Sudurpaschim province, the only oxygen plant in the district has halted its operation on Monday night after experiencing a technical problem.
MYAGDI, May 7: Myagdi district has become self-sufficient on oxygen necessary for the treatment of patients suffering from coronavirus infection and pulmonary complications.
Beni Hospital has brought into operation the oxygen production plant to make the district self-sufficient on oxygen.
At a time when the coronavirus infected and the patients with respiratory complications are struggling with life in want of oxygen in different parts of the country, Myagdi district however has produced oxygen on its own and made it adequately available in its locale.
Beni Hospital in-charge Dr Jitendra Kandel said adequate oxygen was managed for the patients visiting the hospital and those who need supplementary supply. “We have managed supply of oxygen directly to all the beds of the hospital through pipe connected to the plant”, he shared.
Dr Kandel further informed that the structures are being developed to directly supply piped oxygen to the under-construction isolation center.
Beni Hospital has 34 big, four medium and six small oxygen cylinders. The patients are not allowed to bring cylinder to their home. The hospital has appealed to all to provide oxygen cylinders which are lying idle at their home after the demise of chronic patients.
CHITWAN, May 3: Chitwan is not likely to face the shortage of oxygen – which is mostly used in the treatment of COVID-19 patients. Three bog hospitals of Chitwan have their own oxygen manufacturing plants.
Oxygen availability will be adequate in the district with the operation of one additional oxygen manufacturing industry and two big suppliers.
According to Health Office Chief Deepak Tiwari, the Bharatpur hospital, Chitwan medical hospital and College of Medical Sciences Teaching hospital have their own oxygen plants. All these hospitals are providing COVIF treatment and care.
In addition, Swargadwari Oxygen Plant is operational in Bharatpur metropolitan city-1, Ramnagar. The Shanker Oxygen of Parasi, Nawalparasi and Bhajuratna Oxygen Gas of Parawanipur are also supplying oxygen to these health facilities.
Chief District Officer Prem Lal Lamichhane said there was no shortage of oxygen in the district for now. A team headed by CDO Lamichhane had made a onsite monitoring of the oxygen plants. Though the manufacturing output of oxygen is good in the district, the increasing inflow of patients would demand more cylinders, CDO Lamichhane added.
