5.8.20 Burrows Memorial Christian Hospital, Alipur, Assam, Northeast India
“At BMCH, we are following the direction of our state health authorities and treating all general patients who come to our hospital, in spite of all the challenges and risks.
Our income has fallen drastically as patient numbers have dropped due to the lockdown. We had been expecting that the numbers of general patients would start to increase when our district had no more reports of active COVID-19 cases, and that slowly things would return to normal. But unfortunately, yesterday our district reported 5 new COVID-19 positive cases. We may be declared as red zone very soon if things do not get under control. We are struggling to provide staff salaries and to purchase other necessary things. This month will be financially tough for us if we do not treat enough patients.
Currently our area is in the orange zone, so restrictions are still in place. The migrant workers and stranded students in different states are returning, so we are expecting the virus to spread.
Everyone is praying fervently to God for His protection and guidance upon all of us. The number of COVID-19 cases that are asymptomatic are numerous in India. We treat all patients with the utmost care by ensuring all safety measures and protocols are followed as much as possible. We are badly in need of PPE kits and N95 masks to protect our front-line staff. Our doctors refer all the patients with COVID-19 symptoms to Silchar Medical College Hospital (SMCH).
We are also praying for at least one more patient ventilator for treating seriously ill patients. At present, SMCH is the only designated hospital for treating COVID-19 patients in our area. But we don’t know what the situation will be next month as the health authorities of our country are projecting a very high increase of positive cases in the coming months.
Kindly continue to pray for all of us as we continue to serve the community.
~ Mr. Johnson Singson, Senior Administrative Officer
Emmanuel Hospital Association Canada 