New COVID-19 field hosp opens at HMGH

Tribune News Network Doha The second phase of the new field hospital at Hazm Mebaireek General Hospital (HMGH), which provides an additional 100 acute beds...

Tribune News NetworkDohaThe second phase of the new field hospital at Hazm Mebaireek General Hospital (HMGH), which provides an additional 100 acute beds to care for COVID-19 patients, opened on Tuesday.The new field hospital is a permanent structure made from entirely locally-sourced and engineered materials and will provide additional surge capacity for patients in the event of future pandemics for emergencies. The new field hospital is much more than an essential part of the immediate response to COVID-19. While it will provide important additional acute beds for Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC) now, it will also play an important role in any future health crisis by offering the flexibility of opening additional capacity whenever needed. A team of engineers and designers has worked around the clock to construct this new field hospital in a very short time and all of the materials for the building have been sourced and engineered in Qatar.Dr Abdulla Al Ansari, HMC’s Chief Medical Officer, explained how the field hospital will strengthen HMC’s ability to meet increased demand as a result of the COVID-19 second wave. “With the opening of 100 new beds in the second phase of the field hospital, 252 beds are now operational to care for COVID-19 patients, with more than 500 patients having already received care in the first phase of the field hospital.A third phase of the field hospital is due to be completed in two weeks’ time and will boost total capacity to 374 beds – the majority of which are single rooms with full oxygen support. This increased capacity will ensure that anyone requiring hospital admission due to COVID-19 will be admitted without delay to receive expert care from our dedicated clinical teams.”HMC’s Chief of Healthcare Facilities and Acting Chief of Business Services Hamad Al Khalifa said, “As well as providing safe and effective clinical care, every effort has been made to ensure that the patients have everything they need in each room, including individual charging points, lighting control and temperature control. The Field Hospital is a wonderful example of HMC’s ability to find innovative solutions to enable us to meet the increased demands for hospital care throughout this pandemic.”