Overwhelmed by the rising number of novel coronavirus (COVID-19) PUIs and cases in the country, The Medical City in Pasig has decided to temporarily close its doors to patients stricken with or suspected of having the disease.
In an interview with DZMM on Wednesday, April 8, Dr. Eugenio Jose Ramos, the hospital’s president and chief executive officer, said that their hospital staff has been stretched beyond their capability to care for these patients.
Source: Facebook.com, The Medical City
“Dumating sa punto na hindi na namin kakayanin na tumanggap pa ng mga pasyente,” he said. “We had no choice but to really appeal na close na muna kami.”
(“It reached a point that we cannot take in [coronavirus] patients anymore. We had no choice but to really appeal that we should close [our doors to these patients] first.”)
He also flashed a public service announcement onscreen that explained how the hospital is currently dedicating two floors and two whole departments to accommodate these moderate to high-risk patients who “can quickly deteriorate into severe ICU patients.”
The hospital, however, is coordinating with other medical facilities that could accept new patients.
“So habang maaga pa, ini-inform na ang mga tao na kung puwede dumiretso na sila sa ibang hospital kasi talagang hindi na namin kakayanin,” urged Dr. Ramos.
(“So while it’s still early, we are informing everyone to please go directly to other hospitals because we really can’t accept any more.”)
The Medical City will once again accept patients in a few more days once the situation stabilizes. Meanwhile, they will remain open for those with non-COVID-19 related illnesses.
(ALSO READ: Here’s how Pasig is preparing the city’s children’s hospital into a COVID-19 referral facility)
As of writing, there are 3,870 confirmed COVID-19 cases in the Philippines with 182 deaths and 96 recoveries. President Duterte has extended the Luzon lockdown until April 30, 2020.
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