Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Secretary Mark Villar announced the construction of 635 facilities nationwide for health workers and COVID-19 patients has been completed.
The official made the announcement during the final inspection of the Quezon Institute (QI) Modular Hospital which was built to augment the healthcare system capacity of Metro Manila amid the surge of COVID-19 cases.
“139 out of 635 isolation facilities and off-site dormitories are in NCR (National Capital Region). The nationwide utilization rate is 16.91% or 21,362 out of 126,358 beds,” Sec. Villar reported.
Sec. Villar mentioned that the current utilization rate of the said facilities is at 75 percent or 4,938 used out of 6,576 beds. This excludes hotel beds under Oplan Kalinga.
The modular hospital at the QI currently has a bed capacity of 110 inclusive of intensive care units (ICU) rooms for moderate and severe cases of COVID-19.
“This facility will assist our existing health facilities that are now overwhelmed with the continuous spike in COVID-19 cases, especially in Metro Manila and its neighboring provinces,” Sec. Villar said.
“We continue to expand both the temporary treatment and isolation [or] monitoring facilities and rest assured that we are doing our best to fast-track completion of health facilities that will back our health care system,” he added.
The DPWH earlier finished the construction of two modular dormitories with a 64-bed capacity for workers of QI and facilitated the extension of level 3 hospitals using the modular design in Dr. Jose Rodriguez Hospital and Lung Center of the Philippines.
More facilities are being established nationwide to ensure that COVID-19 patients, especially the severe ones, are catered to. The construction of modular hospitals is also underway in National Kidney and Transplant Institute (NKTI), Lung Center of the Philippines, Southern Philippine Medical Center and Dr. Jose Rodriguez Hospital. – Report from Alec Go
