Medical professionals seek ECQ declaration for Mega Manila
MANILA – Healthcare workers from different associations and societies called on President Rodrigo Duterte to consider their distress signal that the country’s “healthcare system has been overwhelmed.”
In a letter dated today and addressed to President Duterte and coursed through National Taskforce COVID-19 Chief Implementer Secretaries Carlito Galvez, Jr. and Francisco Duque III of the Department of Health, the medical professionals said the Department of Health in its July 30 report said there were 3,954 new COVID-19 positive cases.
“We have witnessed a consistent rise in the number of infections and this, among other scenarios, prompts us to act now and act fast,” they said in their letter.
Dr. Mario Panaligan, President of the Philippine College of Physicians said Manila City government announced the temporary closure of two of their biggest hospitals, the Ospital ng Maynila and the Dr. Fabella Memorial Hospital because of the increase in COVID-19 positive cases among their hospital workers as well as the need to decongest their facilities due to the overwhelming number of admitted patients.
“Our healthcare workers are falling ill as they take care of patients, responding to the call of duty while battling the fear and anxiety COVID-19 brings. Our healthcare workers are burnt out with the seemingly endless number of patients trooping to our hospitals for emergency care and admission,” Dr. Panaligan said.
They have proposed for a two-week ECQ in Mega Manila to be used as “time-out” to refine the pandemic control strategies to address the deficiency in hospital workforce, attend to the failure of case finding and isolation, strengthen contact tracing and quarantine, assure transportation and workplace safety and further motivate public compliance with self-protection.
They also called on government to provide the necessary support for people potentially affected by the proposed lockdown which will last for two weeks.
The Philippine College of Physicians’ position is supported by 68 associations, colleges and societies across the country. (Melo M. Acuña)
