The King George Medical University (KGMU), Lucknow, has submitted a proposal to the government to introduce a real-time ventilator bed availability system across government hospitals, aiming to streamline emergency care and reduce critical delays.
Real-Time Data to Transform Referral System
The proposed system is designed to allow doctors and patients to check the availability of ventilator beds before reaching hospitals. This move is expected to significantly improve the existing referral mechanism, where patients from district hospitals, Community Health Centres (CHCs), and Primary Health Centres (PHCs) are often referred without confirming bed availability.
As a result, families of critically ill patients frequently face the distressing situation of moving from one hospital to another in search of available ventilators.
Hospitals to Be Digitally Linked
Under the plan, district hospitals will be digitally connected with major tertiary care centres, enabling referring doctors to verify ventilator availability in advance. This integration is expected to ensure quicker admissions and better utilisation of critical care resources.
Idle Ventilators Highlight Resource Gap
Officials have pointed out a significant mismatch between available infrastructure and its actual utilisation. Due to a shortage of trained staff and specialists, around 60–65 ventilators in government hospitals across Lucknow are currently lying unused.
At Lokbandhu Hospital, only 10 out of 40 ventilators are functional, largely due to ongoing ICU renovation work after a fire incident last year. Similarly, Balrampur Hospital has just 28 functional ventilators out of 60.
Limited utilisation has also been reported at Thakurganj Hospital and Rani Lakshmibai Hospital.
Tertiary Centres Under Constant Pressure
Major institutions such as Sanjay Gandhi Postgraduate Institute of Medical Sciences, King George Medical University, and Dr Ram Manohar Lohia Institute of Medical Sciences collectively have around 500 ventilators.
However, these centres receive a heavy influx of patients not only from Uttar Pradesh but also neighbouring Bihar, putting immense strain on their capacity.
“Every Minute Matters,” Say Experts
Highlighting the urgency of the proposal, Prof Premraj Singh, Chief Medical Superintendent of the trauma centre at KGMU, said that critically ill patients often arrive when no ventilator is available, leading to life-threatening delays.
He added that the proposal has been submitted and a meeting of government hospitals in the city will soon be convened to finalise the operational model.
The initiative, if implemented, is expected to significantly improve emergency response efficiency and save lives by ensuring timely access to critical care facilities.
