While ready for any Covid-19 case surge, the Covid-19 wards at the Baguio General Hospital and Medical Center are slowly being converted into regular wards due to the decreasing number of cases admitted in the hospital.
Dr. Bernard Demot, BGH Infectious Diseases specialist, said they have observed a decrease in the number of admitted Covid-19 cases at BGHMC since January after the height of the Omicron variant surge in the city.
For January, the BGHMC admitted 567 Covid-19 cases, 190 cases in February, and down to 23 for the first two weeks of March.
As of March 16, there are only eight active cases being attended to at the BGHMC, six are unvaccinated.
Demot reported the number of patients dying from the virus that causes the Covid-19 has also been decreasing from 45 in January, 35 in February, and three this month.
The hospital’s hospital care utilization rate is currently at 20 percent.
While Covid-19 cases are on downtrend, Demot said they are currently increasing the bed capacity for non-Covid cases, which continue to increase.
“Ang ilan sa mga dating Covid wards ay unti-unti nangkino-convert to non-Covid wards para ma-accommodate ang mga ‘clean’ cases,” he said in a media briefing last March 17.
These patients include those undergoing chemotherapy and those who have been scheduled for surgery but postponed due to the pandemic.
Demot, however, assured BGHMC is ready for case surges, although they are hoping the downtrend will continue until it remains at zero cases.
He said the wards can be converted into Covid or regular wards as needed, and also in light of the latest Covid-19 variant, Deltacron, recently identified by the World Health Organization and discovered in Europe.
“We are also taking into consideration the latest variant. So this (conversion) does not mean that the hospital will become non-Covid. There are still areas to be allotted for Covid patients. Most areas in BGHMC are convertible, so that anytime a case surge occurs at kailangan ng karag-dagang rooms, it can be opened to accommodate cases,” he said.
BGHMC has so far admitted a total of 5,390 Covid-19 cases as of March 16, of which 4,546 have recovered and 674 died.
Demot appealed to the public to remain responsible and make it a practice to follow public health standards.
“Hindi ibig sabihin na kahit karamihan ng mga lugar ay nasa level 1 na ay kakalimutan na natin ang palagiang paggamit ng alcohol at paghuhugas ng kamay. Mag-isolate agad o ibukod ang sarili kung may nararamdaman o may sintomas ng Covid 19, lalo na kung may mga kasama tayo o katrabahong vulnerable. Marahil nga nandoon na po tayo sa tinatawag na end of the tunnel ng pandemic na ito pero huwag po sana tayong maging kampante. Maging vigilant pa rin at mag-ingat tayo palagi,” Demot said. – Hanna C. Lacsamana
April 24, 2024
