AIIMS halts OPD admissions for two weeks as COVID-19 cases surge

This is the second time AIIMS Delhi has decided to suspend all OPD admissions since the coronavirus pandemic outbreak in India. Earlier, a similar order was passed on March 24, suspending all OPD admissions except emergency cases, and the services had only resumed since June 25.

Moneycontrol News

September 02, 2020 / 18:43 IST

File image: AIIMS

After witnessing a surge in coronavirus patients, the All India Institute of Medical Science (AIIMS) Delhi has reportedly decided to stop admissions to the Outpatient Department (OPD) once again. AIIMS will not be admitting patients to the general and private wards of the hospital for two weeks starting September 2.

The order will be reviewed after two weeks and may not be revoked if the inflow of COVID-19 patients remains high. This rule will not be applicable to emergency patients who require immediate hospitalisation, reported The Print.

For live updates on coronavirus, click here

A circular issued by the AIIMS on September 1, read: “The order does not apply to emergency patients who may require inpatient hospitalisation in general wards or those who have been advised the treatment in private wards owing to emergency/semi-emergency conditions. Employees Health Scheme (EHS) patients will also continue to be hospitalised as is clinically warranted.”

The hospital administration took this decision to optimise the usage of available inpatient beds to hospitalize seriously ill coronavirus patients.

COVID-19 Vaccine

Frequently Asked Questions

How does a vaccine work?

A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine.

How many types of vaccines are there?

There are broadly four types of vaccine — one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine.

What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind?

Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time.

Show