The North News
New Delhi, May 24
As Covid-19 cases begin to resurface across India and beyond, the Delhi government has issued a fresh health advisory, directing all hospitals in the capital—both public and private—to ensure immediate preparedness for a potential resurgence of the virus. In a notification issued here, the Delhi health department instructed Medical Directors, Superintendents, and hospital administrators to verify that essential equipment—including ventilators, BiPAP machines, oxygen concentrators, and Pressure Swing Adsorption (PSA) oxygen plants—are fully functional and available in sufficient numbers. The advisory also stressed the need for daily reporting of relevant hospital preparedness metrics on the Delhi State Health Data Management Portal.
The government has mandated that hospitals must maintain a steady supply of oxygen, antibiotics, essential drugs, and vaccines. Testing protocols are to be strictly followed, with instructions to test 5% of all Influenza-Like Illness (ILI) cases and 100% of Severe Acute Respiratory Illness (SARI) cases, in accordance with Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) guidelines.
Further, in a bid to track the virus’s evolution, the advisory requires all hospitals to send positive COVID-19 samples for whole genome sequencing (WGS) to Lok Nayak Hospital. This measure aims to enable the timely detection of emerging variants. The number of samples sent must be shared with the State Surveillance Unit for monitoring and analysis. While the current case numbers remain relatively low, the move is seen as a precautionary measure amid global reports of new sub-variants and fluctuating infection patterns. Officials said that the capital must not be caught unprepared as the virus continues to evolve.
