Iloilo City Government plans to use St. Therese-MTCC Hospital (“STMH”) as a functioning Level 1 Hospital to address the high healthcare utilization rate (“HCUR”) in the metro.
“We are asking the Department of Health (DOH) for the approval of this proposal. We have to move fast because the virus, especially the Delta variant, is also swift in infecting people and claiming lives,” Mayor Jerry P. Treñas said.
The city has total HCUR of 82.50% or “high risk” classification based on the health system monitoring capacity of the Department of Health (“DOH”) as of August 4, 2021.
Both COVID wards at 88.54% and intensive care unit (“ICU”) beds at 90.37% are in “critical”; while mechanical ventilation for COVID is at 65.85% or “moderate” classification.
Treñas instructed Quarantine Facility Manager Gabriel Felix Umadhay to prepare the STMH for the Delta variant cases, and have 50 beds ready for such patients.
Currently, the isolation facility houses five positive close contacts of a Delta variant case, and 13 other positive patients.
All are considered “manageable cases”, according to Umadhay.
Iloilo City COVID-19 focal person Dr. Roland Jay Fortuna said turning STMH into a Level 1 Hospital would mean it can admit moderate cases, but clarifies it has no intensive care unit capability.
“This is just so we can augment the hospitals here that have over-flowing capacities due to the surge in cases,” he added.
STMH, which formerly operated as tertiary hospital, was lent for free to the City Government. It serves as a quarantine facility for mild to moderate cases since last year when the pandemic broke out. (Iloilo City PIO)
