ISOLATION HUB. Plaza Del Norte, a provincial government-owned hotel in Ilocos Norte, has been designated as an isolation facility for patients under investigation with mild symptoms. They can stay at the facility for 14 days free of charge. (Photo courtesy of the provincial government of Ilocos Norte).
LAOAG CITY — A provincial government-owned hotel and convention facility in Barangay Balacad in this city has opened its doors to patients under investigation (PUIs) with mild symptoms of the new coronavirus disease (Covid-19).
In a press conference held at the Provincial Capitol on Wednesday afternoon, Governor Matthew Joseph Manotoc announced that the Plaza Del Norte (PDN) along with the Laoag City General Hospital (LCGH) and a make-shift tent at the Department of Public Works and Highways compound across the Governor Roque B. Ablan Sr. Memorial Hospital, can now be used as isolation facilities.
The PDN can accommodate at least 40 persons while the LCGH has allocated at least 10 isolation rooms. The governor’s announcement came following the confirmation of two Covid19-positive cases in the province.
While contact tracing is ongoing for those who had mingled with the Covid-19 patients, Manotoc said all local government units in the province have to identify their own quarantine facility to prevent the spread of infection.
“PUIs who are high risk will be staying in the hospital while those who are low risk and under 60 years old may stay in government isolation facilities,” he said.
As of this posting, the Ilocos Norte government is still waiting for the arrival of a Polymerase chain reaction machine to speed up the Covid-19 testing of PUIs.
Instead of sending laboratory samples to Metro Manila which takes around 48 hours to determine the result, the PCR can speed up the process of diagnosing infected persons and help provide immediate and effective medical care to Covid-19 patients.
It can also empower the province of Ilocos Norte and other local government units in implementing more effective contact tracing and containment measures. (PNA)
The lobby of Plaza Del Norte in Ilocos Norte, which is being prepared to house patients under investigation for Covid-19. (Photo courtesy of the provincial government of Ilocos Norte)
