The Department of Health (DOH) regional office for Bicol in Legazpi City. (Photo courtesy of DOH Bicol)
LEGAZPI CITY – The Department of Health Center for Health Development (DOH-CHD)-Bicol has urged the local Inter-Agency Task Forces for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EIDs) in the region to intensify their measures in fighting coronavirus disease (Covid-19) to curb the continuing spike in cases.
Dr. Ferchito Avelino, DOH-Bicol assistant regional director, in a news briefing on Thursday also urged local health authorities to only refer severe and critical cases to hospitals to prevent an overflow of patients.
Those with mild and moderate symptoms should be brought to the designated isolation facilities in their province, town, or city, he added.
Avelino said the health care utilization rate in three Covid-19 referral hospitals in Bicol is currently at a moderate risk level but is feared to soon reach a critical rate.
He said at the Bicol Regional Training and Teaching Hospital (BRTTH) in Legazpi City, which has 76 beds allocated for Covid patients, 49 (64 percent) are available, while out of the 18 intensive care unit (ICU) beds, 16 (89 percent) are occupied.
At the Bicol Medical Center (BMC) in Naga City which has 140 beds allocated for Covid-19 patients, only 72 (51 percent) are available, while of the 25 ICU beds, 20 (80 percent) are occupied.
At the Bicol Region General Hospital Geriatric Medical Center (BRGHGMC) in Cabusao, Camarines Sur, which has 63 beds allocated for Covid-19 patients, 12 (19 percent) are occupied. All or 100 percent of the allocated ICU beds are occupied.
To sum it up, Avelino said in Bicol, 90 percent of the ICU beds are occupied while 58 percent of beds in various ward facilities are available.
“Looking at the current condition in all Bicol Covid hospitals, the situation is getting quite critical,” he said.
On the seemingly uncontrollable spike in Covid-19 cases in Bicol, he said the contributing factors include public complacency in following the minimum health standards and restrictions, and mass gatherings, including relief and medical missions. (PNA)
