MECQ extension in NCR Plus great relief for hospitals: PHAP

The extension of modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ) in the National Capital Region (NCR) Plus is a big relief for healthcare facilities, according to the group of private hospitals.

Private Hospitals Association of the Philippines President Dr. Jose Rene De Grano that this will help the health workers to breathe somehow.

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Although the number of COVID-19 patients has decreased slightly, the hospitals are still full, particularly in NCR Plus and other regions such as Calabarzon, Central Luzon, and Cagayan Valley.

“With this extension, at least, kahit 2 weeks, eh medyo luluwag nang konti ang ating mga ospital nang sa ganoon makapagpahinga naman nang konti ang ating mga health care workers,” said De Grano.

The government has extended the MECQ until May 14 in Metro Manila, Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna and Rizal, amid the ongoing threat of COVID-19.

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Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said the health care utilization rate in Manila is now 69 percent after the addition of modular hospital sites, and other health facilities.

MECQ extension in NCR Plus great relief for hospitals: PHAP

There were 6,895 new COVID-19 cases in the country recorded on Wednesday, bringing the total to 1,020,495.

The extension of the MECQ is also a big deal for the health care workers of Jose R. Reyes Memorial Medical Center in Manila, according to their medical chief Dr. Wenceslao Llauderes.

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For Llauderes, quarantine restrictions have been effective in recent weeks as a large number of COVID-19 patients have been discharged from the hospital.

He said from 10 to 15 last week, their admission was only 3 to 5.

However, he also said that the public should not be complacent.

“Ang MECQ is still a message for us na ‘di tayo mawalan ng vigilance, na talagang dapat magbantay pa rin tayo. Kahit sasabihin natin sa hospital setup, nakikita ang mga pasyente, maya’t maya pasok dito., But within the past 2 weeks, nakikita, kahit papaano, may luwag na ng numero. At sa frontliners, may nakikitang, ‘Hay, salamat, may senyales talaga ng pag-asa’,” said Llauderes.

But at the East Avenue Medical Center in Quezon City, the number of patients in their hospital is still the same.

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