Delhi: Govt hospital operation theatre shut over reports of eye infection

NEW DELHI: The operation theatre at Guru Nanak Eye Centre — a hospital run by the Delhi government — has been shut down for maintenance following reports that some patients who underwent surgery last week developed a reaction.

Guru Nanak Eye Centre is a 200-bed hospital and on an average, 30-40 surgeries are conducted in the hospital daily. No surgeries were conducted on Monday and Tuesday due to the shutdown.

Dr Sushil Kumar, director of the hospital, confirmed that the OT has been shut down since Monday. He, however, claimed that no patient has suffered any serious reaction or infection. “OT maintenance is a routine activity. It will restart in a day or two,” he said. A similar scare had taken place in the hospital in 2015 when surgeries had to be put off for four days when a patient developed severe infection in the eye. The operation theatre was sterilised to rid the equipment and instruments of any infection.

Last year, some patients who were seeking treatment for various eye ailments at Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital complained about mild pain, watery eyes and blurred vision, triggering apprehensions that the drug administered to them was contaminated. Serious cases were referred to All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) where minor procedure was conducted to check the spread of infection.