Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, November 12) — The government’s One Hospital Command Center (OHCC), a healthcare referral network, has reduced its bed capacity in isolation facilities as COVID-19 cases drop.
“Sa isolation facilities, dahil sa pagbaba ng cases nagbawas rin kami ng beds,” Dr. Marylaine Padlan, OHCC medical officer, said during a virtual briefing Friday.
[Translation: Because of the declining cases, we also decreased the bed capacity in isolation facilities.]
But Padlan noted that if the Philippines – especially the capital and nearby provinces – witness another spike in cases, the OHCC is ready to boost the bed capacity.
The OHCC representative did not elaborate on where the isolation units are located, or how much had been slashed.
As for the volume of calls received by the OHCC, Padlan said they have been averaging 150 requests per day in the past weeks.
Padlan, however, added that they have yet to study the impact of the Alert Level 2 in Metro Manila.
The Inter-Agency Task Force earlier approved the shift to the lower alert status, starting Nov. 5 until 21 – allowing business establishments to cater to more customers as capacities have been expanded to up to 70%.
