Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 5) — A number of universities in the capital region have agreed to provide rooms for asymptomatic COVID-19 patients to help prevent viral transmission in the households, according to Senator Richard Gordon.
The Philippine Red Cross, chaired by the senator, is teaming up with Metro Manila mayors to build isolation wards for infected patients in a bid to decongest overwhelmed hospitals. Gordon told CNN Philippines on Monday that these will be set up in areas all over the region, including some schools.
“When we find an asymptomatic spreader in a home, in a hovel, really, he can infect everybody, that’s why you have families now getting sick,” he said.
“So, we’ll pull out the asymptomatic spreader, put him, six to a room, in the schools like Ateneo and we’re preparing for Ateneo, by Thursday it will be open, and La Salle and UP. We’ve talked to UP, right now as we speak, they’re preparing for it,” he continued.
Gordon said the patients will be provided with bed, food, medicine and personnel who will monitor their health condition. He added they are also looking into extending cash aid, especially if the infected individual is a breadwinner.
“I would like to make sure that when we get these people out, we have enough money also to give their families who are going to be left behind, because nobody is going to be a breadwinner,” he said. “Just last week, we gave 3,500 single parents food for one week and we want to do this also for the people who are going to be left behind.”
Data from the Department of Health showed that as of April 3, at least 1 in 3 Metro Manila hospitals have reached over 85% COVID-19 bed occupancy, with some declaring full capacity over the past weeks amid the surge in infections.
New COVID-19 cases in the country had hit record highs multiple times over the past weeks, with the daily tally reaching over 15,000 last Friday. The total case count has now breached 800,000, of which 143,726 or 17.9% remain active, according to DOH.
