Yoga, meditation & bhajans — life inside the Covid wards of Ahmedabad Civil Hospital

Doctors at the civil hospital in Ahmedabad say more and more people are getting discharged than before. ThePrint's Praveen Jain & Kairvy Grewal document its Covid-19 wards.

Amrit Bhai Panchal, a 64-year-old Covid-19 patient, sings 'Gulaabi aankhein' for a group of doctors and paramedics to lighten the mood | Photo: Praveen Jain | ThePrint

Ahmedabad: The Gujarat High Court had in May rapped authorities at the Ahmedabad Civil Hospital, the main government Covid-19 facility in the state, for its high mortality rate, calling it “as good as a dungeon“.

A few months down the line, doctors at the facility ThePrint spoke to said more and more people are getting discharged than before. This was possible, they said, due to better understanding of the virus, efforts of the state government and implementation of strict rules.

ThePrint’s Praveen Jain and Kairvy Grewal visited the Covid-19 wards and its ICUs to document how the government hospital was dealing with pandemic. Patients were seen doing yoga and even singing songs in their wards.

Sunita (center), a Covid-19 patient, said she is often bored if counsellor Suraj (right) doesn’t show up for his daily duty. She also said that she has made many friends in the Covid-19 ward | Photo: Praveen Jain | ThePrint

A doctor encourages recovering Covid-19 patients to do yoga | Photo: Praveen Jain | ThePrint

Patients performing deep breathing exercises to help them recover quickly | Photo: Praveen Jain | ThePrint

Covid-19 patients doing meditation inside their ward | Photo: Praveen Jain | ThePrint

A coronavirus patient singing a bhajan as she hopes for a quick recovery in the Covid-19 ward of the civil hospital | Photo: Praveen Jain | ThePrint

Dr Rakesh Joshi (left), additional medical superintendent, helps Dr Rajnish Patel, also an additional medical superintendent of the Ahmedabad Civil Hospital, with his PPE kit | Photo: Praveen Jain | ThePrint

Counsellors show Covid-19 patients how do a deep breathing exercise | Photo: Praveen Jain | ThePrint

A woman waves goodbye to her doctors while getting discharged from the hospital | Photo: Praveen Jain | ThePrint

Another doctor helps a Covid-19 patient do yoga | Photo: Praveen Jain | ThePrint

A team of paramedics, nurses and doctors at the civil hospital. They were heard chanting “Corona haarega, Gujarat jeetega” (Coronavirus will be defeated, Gujarat will win) | Photo: Praveen Jain | ThePrint