Angul: Angul district headquarters hospital has been struggling with shortage of gloves and sanitiser for the last one and a half months, forcing COVID-19 warriors starting from doctors to health workers to reuse their gloves.
Prior to COVID-19 pandemic, the DHH required 50,000 gloves a month. As of now, it has increased to 70,000. But the doctors, nurses and other staff are not getting new gloves. “We are not getting new gloves. So we are forced to reuse the old gloves after washing and drying them after every single use. If no immediate step is taken to address the problem, it will definitely hamper the service,” rued dermatologist and blood bank officer Dr Biswajit Samal. According to him, the same problem has hit the blood bank. While conducting various tests here, the staff are required to wear gloves. Due to the shortage of gloves, they are also reusing their gloves.
Meanwhile the death of two COVID-19 warriors of the DHH has left the doctors and staff in fear and apprehension. The doctors and other employees have been taking the matter up with the chief district medical officer but to no avail. They have even sought the District Collector’s intervention.
Sources said, a tender for supplying the required number of gloves has been finalized. Since the price of the gloves has increased due to the pandemic, the organization that has been awarded the tender has been reluctant to supply the gloves at the old price.
When asked, Dr Gyana Rajan Dash of the orthopedic department said nobody is paying any heed to our problem arising due to shortage of gloves. So we are forced to use PPE kits while attending patients. But it is not feasible to wear PPE kits all the time.
Chief district medical officer (CDMO) Dr Abhay Kumar Das, when contacted, said, “The problem of gloves shortage has badly affected the health service. Higher officials and the health department have been made aware of this problem. Despite frequent reminders to Odisha Medicine Council, nothing has been done in this regard as yet.”
PNN