The outpatient department (OPD) at Delhi’s Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narayan Hospital (LNJP) Hospital witnessed a huge influx of patients complaining of breathlessness and infections on Thursday morning. The hospital staff told CNN-News18 that this has been the scene here since Diwali and the numbers have been increasing.
We spoke to many of these patients, some already had respiratory illnesses, who told us how their health has become worse with the city’s air turning toxic. Some patients have been complaining of prolonged coughing and sneezing since Diwali. Most of them are children and the elderly.
“I am here with my six-year-old. He has been experiencing throat pain and constantly coughing at home. I went to the nearby dispensary but it was too crowded. So I came to LNJP Hospital all the way from Dilshad Garden, reached at 6am to get the OPD card. It is crowded here also, but I am hoping my son will get some respite through medicines from the doctors here. I have been standing here for three hours. It is 9am, and the doctor has arrived. I have told my son, once we reach home, he will not step out," said Fathima Rehman, a Delhi resident.
Patients had been waiting for three to four hours to consult a doctor. The staff told us that OPD hours are from 9am to 3pm and with huge crowds, it becomes difficult to manage things.
60-year-old Kamla Devi was patiently waiting her turn to see the doctor. “Winters are anyway a difficult time for me. I am an arthritis patient. My whole body hurts during winter and to make things worse now I have a chest infection also. We are breathing this toxic air every day. It becomes difficult for people my age. I am hoping with the medication from here things will be better for me," she said.
The OPD at LNJP, which usually sees a crowd of 500-600 on a daily basis, is now witnessing twice that. Medical director Dr Suresh Kumar told CNN News18, “Toxic air causes severe illness. There is an increase in the cases of people complaining of respiratory problems. It is the case every year. We witness this surge every year. Children and the elderly are the most affected during this period. What is worrisome here is that not just the patients with prolonged respiratory illnesses but even the healthy ones are complaining of one or the other breathing issue in Delhi now. We give them antiviral or anti-infection medicines and see how they are doing. There have also been cases where people with comorbidities have had their condition worsen and had to be admitted to the ICU."
Experts have been suggesting that people should not step out of their homes, especially during the early morning hours as the situation is worse during that time. Diet should also include antioxidants and a lot of green vegetables on a daily basis, they say.
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