The Dhanbad deputy commissioner has directed that a planned care centre for Covid-19 patients at Patliputra Medical College and Hospital (PMCH) be opened by next week.

Deputy commissioner Umashankar Singh carried out an inspection of the upcoming facility at an unused cath lab at the hospital, took stock of infrastructure and manpower and instructed the civil surgeon, Dr Gopal Das, and PMCH superintendent Dr Arun Kumar Chaudhary to launch the centre by next week.

Speaking to The Telegraph Online, Dr Chaudhary said: “The arrangement for healthcare workers to man the care centre has already been made.”

The 200-bed care centre will be used for the treatment of asymptomatic cases or patients with mild symptoms.

The care centre is expected to reduce the burden on the existing 100-bed dedicated Covid-19 hospital at Dhanbad’s Jagjivan Nagar.

The cath lab at PMCH in Dhanbad Gautam Dey

The district administration has also completed all preparations for the launch of Covid-19 treatment at Tata Central Hospital Jamadoba for 15 patients. Singh conducted an inspection of the facilities at the hospital on July 17.

Singh on Sunday also visited the microbiology lab at PMCH and took stock of the Covid-19 sample testing being carried out using the reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RTPCR) and TrueNat machines and explored the possibility of increasing the number of tests to around 1,000 per day.

Currently, only 500-600 tests are being conducted at PMCH, leading to a backlog.

He objected to the location of the TrueNat test site in the microbiology section and instructed the PMCH authorities to shift the testing facility to a more spacious place at the college building.

During the inspection, Singh also took stock of the availability of PPE kits, face shields and other protective gear for the doctors and paramedical staff.

Earlier, Singh held talks with the junior doctors of the hospital who had boycotted work since Saturday evening over the pending stipend of February 2020 and assured them that he would take up their issue with the state government and ensure the payment within a week.

The junior doctors withdrew their agitation following the assurance.