With the addition of over 12,000 cases on Monday, the state’s active cases surpassed 50,000 on Monday, up from around 7,000 in mid-December. Daily cases in Maharashtra and Mumbai increased by over 200 each, even on Monday, when the rate is usually much lower due to low testing and a weekend delay in updating the numbers, according to reports.
Maharashtra reported 12,160 fresh coronavirus cases on Monday, 283 more than the previous day, and 11 new deaths, while the active tally crossed the 50,000-mark, the state health department said. With these additions, the state’s COVID-19 tally rose to 67,12,028, while the death toll increased to 1,41,553, it said.
The Mumbai region, which comprises the metropolis and its satellite cities, recorded 10,682 new cases.
Case Rise Spurs Hospital Ramp-ups
BMC Additional Municipal Commissioner Suresh Kakani told the Times of India that Mumbai city reported 8,082 cases, as per BMC report, but up to 90% were asymptomatic.
“While 574 were hospitalised, 71 were on oxygen support. The bed occupancy is 12% but we are preparing all jumbos to function optimally,” he said, adding that jumbo centres have been asked to give dates by when they will be fully functional.
According to Kakani, up to 92 per cent of cases are reported from high rises. He said the slums have yet to make a significant contribution to the caseload. Dr. Mangala Gomare, BMC’s executive health officer told the Times of India that it was not because testing was less in slums. “People are being tested as and when they develop symptoms,” she said, adding that contact tracing was also being meticulously carried out.
A member of the state Covid task force said in the report that the city must brace itself for a significant increase in cases and ICU admissions. “Even if Omicron is only showing mild symptoms, Delta and its lineages are still circulating,” the member said.
Hospitalisations Increase in Mumbai City: Report
According to a report in the Times of India, daily Covid hospitalizations in the city have increased by 15% in the last four days, owing to an increase in cases. The civic-run jumbo centres are rushing to add beds, while private hospitals have begun converting many of their non-Covid wards to Covid sections.
Five-seventy-four people were admitted to city hospitals on Monday, up from 503 on Sunday, 389 on Saturday, and 497 on Friday. A few hospitals have begun to see an increase in ICU admissions, with many directly resulting from low oxygen saturation levels.
According to BMC data released on Monday, 12.2 percent (3,735) of Mumbai’s 30,565 Covid-19 beds are occupied, and 14 percent of the 2,720 ICU beds are occupied. For the past two weeks, the city has seen an increase in cases, and a rise in critical cases is typically seen from the second or third week onwards.
The majority of Covid beds in the city are in the public sector. As of Monday, the private sector had only 5,192 Covid beds, with 838 (16%) regular beds and 180 (3%) ICU beds occupied.
Daily admissions at the Nesco jumbo centre in Goregaon have increased from seven on December 26 to nearly 120 on Monday.
On Monday noon, approximately 510 of the 1,172 available beds were occupied. Dean Dr. Neelam Andrade stated that they intend to activate all 2,738 beds by January 10 and are actively recruiting healthcare workers on a daily basis. The ICU occupancy has increased to 20 from five a week ago, accounting for 42 percent of the 48 available beds. According to Andrade, they admitted three patients on Sunday, which increased to six on Monday. By the evening, they expected four more ICU referrals.
“Patients require oxygen support, but no one is on a mechanical ventilator,” she said, adding that the majority of ICU admissions have been of unvaccinated people with multiple comorbidities.
According to Joy Chakraborty, COO of P D Hinduja Hospital, private hospitals primarily are seeing symptomatic patients. From a dozen patients at Christmas, the number has risen to 49, occupying nearly 63 percent of the available space. The hospital’s 28-bed Covid ICU is one-third full. “The severity is not much, and the oxygen requirement is not unusual, but we have to wait and watch,” he told TOI.
Mid-level hospitals are also seeing an increase in demand. As cases shrank, Dr Sunil Agrawal of Malad’s Sanjeevani Hospital said he kept 25 Covid beds on one of the floors. On Monday, nearly 20 patients were admitted to the hospital.
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