Delhi CM seeks hospital-wise data of deaths

NEW DELHI: The health department was on Friday asked by chief minister Arvind Kejriwal to give a hospital-wise analysis of Covid-19 deaths, apart from the recovery of patients.

So far, 3,300 Covid-19 deaths have taken place in the capital out of the 1,09,140 total cases reported till date. A source said that no conclusion about the main reason behind the deaths could be drawn in the meeting chaired by the CM. A conclusion would be made only after analysing the causes of deaths at the micro level.

A detailed analysis of the deaths is being done by the government to pinpoint the reasons behind them so that micro-level interventions could be initiated to bring down the numbers. The health department would be submitting additional details to the CM in another meeting for analysis. A source said back-to-back meetings would be held to make an effort to save precious lives.

Details of deaths, the status of recovery and patients under critical care were shared in the meeting. Till now, 84,694 people have recovered from the disease. While the recovery rate is rising, mortality rate continues to be largely stable. A government report stated that the death rate in Delhi had seen a sharp decline since June. The highest number of deaths on a single day in June was 120 in the first week. This was now down to 50.

An official said that comorbidity was one of prime reasons behind the deaths because it made infected people vulnerable and they became critical. “There are three reasons for Covid deaths apart from comorbidity. One, when the virus badly damages the heart leading to cardiac arrest, secondly, serious damage to the lungs and, thirdly, multiple organs getting damaged at the same time. In some cases, all the organ damages occur simultaneously,” the official added.

The government would be able to plan measures to reduce deaths only after a final conclusion behind the reason is drawn after analysis. From June 27 to July 3, the average fresh cases per day was 2,494 compared with 3,446 cases the previous week.