There were over 150 minor fire incidents in Delhi last Diwali and approximately 450 patients were admitted to the hospitals for burn injuries during the time. While the respiratory illnesses continued weeks after Diwali, the emergency rush in the hospitals on Diwali night was overwhelming. Keeping last year's figures in mind, despite the Supreme Court ban on the sale of firecrackers this year, which may result in fewer cases, hospitals are still all geared up to handle the inflow of patients on Diwali. "We generally see 30-40 per cent rise in the burn patients coming in emergency around Diwali. For this reason alone, despite a 50-bedded disaster ward, we have also made arrangements to use the 93-bedded fever ward as the makeshift emergency, in case of a disaster," says Dr Ritu Saxena, Deputy Medical Superintendent, Department of Accident and Emergency, Lok Nayak Hospital. "Also, during Diwali time, some elective surgery patients take discharge to go home, we keep those available too. Some of the staff will be available round the clock, we had to cancel a few leaves to keep the work here going," she adds. The Directorate General Health Services, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, and DDMA (District Disaster Management Authority), have issued an order asking Lady Hardinge Medical College, and associated hospitals Srimati Sucheta Kriplani Hospital (SSKH), and Kalawati Saran Children Hospital (KSCH), to make necessary arrangements to tend to the medical exigency and treatment of patients during Deepavali festival from 9 AM on October 19 to 9 AM on October 21. As many as 22 beds in SSKH and 14 in KSCH have been earmarked for disaster on Diwali. "A senior resident from Surgery has been appointed only to tend to the burn patients coming in during Diwali. There will be a counter in the Emergency Department to direct these patients. We are prepared for any mass casualty," says Dr Vivek Chouksey, FORDA President, Lady Hardinge Medical College. Hospitals like Guru Gobind Singh, despite not having a burn ward, have also made arrangements to handle more patients than usual due to the proximity to areas like Raghubir Nagar and Subhash Nagar, where firecracker incidents are more common. MAKING IT COUNT

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