To augment the supplies and ensure adequate medical oxygen in all the state healthcare institutions as well as private hospitals, the Punjab Government will set up 75 pressure swing adsorption (PSA) plants in all the districts to combat the much-anticipated third COVID wave in the state.
Sharing the information while chairing a meeting to review the management of medical oxygen in the state healthcare institutions, the state Chief Secretary Vini Mahajan directed the senior health officers to make earnest efforts for early functioning of all the PSA plants in the State.
While two plants at Barnala and Nangal have already been made functional, the work on others is in full swing. Two under trial plants at Medical Colleges of Amritsar and Patiala have also been commissioned.
Besides, more than 5,000 oxygen concentrators (OCs) have also been provided to all the state hospitals, CHCs and health and wellness centres to take care of any emergent requirements. Furthermore, 3,000 OCs, purchased by the Punjab Government with assistance of the World Bank, are being distributed to the state hospitals.
The Chief Secretary also constituted a State Oxygen Management Group, headed by Principal Secretary (Water Supply and Sanitation) Jaspreet Talwar with Director (Industry and Commerce) C Sibin, Punjab Health System Corporation (PHSC) managing director Tanu Kashyap, and Additional Secretary (Water Supply and Sanitation) Amit Talwar as its members. Talwar has also been appointed as state nodal officer to keep liaison with the Government of India in this regard.
Taking stock of the availability and requirement of medical oxygen in the State, the Chief Secretary asked the newly-constituted group to prepare an assessment report regarding actual requirement of the life-saving gas by the public as well as private healthcare institutions, requirement of liquid medical oxygen (LMO) plants, PSA plants, and OCs besides adequate storage and transport facilities and availability of MO cylinders.
The Chief Secretary was apprised that around 34,000 medical oxygen cylinders were already available in the state. In addition to this, 2,500 cylinders were received from the donors and 1000 more expected from the donors.