Private hospitals here still need up to 392 healthcare workers and support staff as the city continues to battle the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19).
A report of the city government on Monday night showed a list that includes six doctors for the midway referral facility and 288 nurses for the emergency treatment center and isolation facilities as well as 18 radiology technicians, 26 medical technologists, 24 respiratory therapists, and 30 housekeeping staff.
City Administrator Em Ang, executive director of the Bacolod City Emergency Operations Center (EOC), said that Mayor Evelio Leonardia had earlier sent a letter request to the National Inter-Agency Task Force (NIATF) Against Covid-19 to send augmentation health personnel to the city.
In the letter, Leonardia said that the serious shortage of nurses and healthcare workers especially in private hospitals is still a problem.
“In this connection, may I, therefore, humbly request for your assistance by providing us the additional personnel required to capacitate and enable the full operation of hospital isolation units,” the mayor in his letter addressed to Secretary Carlito Galvez, chief implementer of the National Action Plan Against Covid-19 and one of the top officials of the NIATF.
Last month, the Department of Health in Central Visayas (DOH-7) deployed 15 nurses to Bacolod through the assistance of the Office of the Presidential Assistant for the Visayas headed by Secretary Michael Lloyd Dino, which is part of the Cebu team assisting Bacolod in its battle against Covid-19.
On the last week of August, medical personnel of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, composed of two teams with six members each, were assigned to two private hospitals — Dr. Pablo O. Torre Memorial Hospital (Riverside Medical Center) and Bacolod Queen of Mercy Hospital.
Each team was composed of one doctor, two nurses, and three aide men.
After ending their month-long tour of duty, they were replaced by another batch, comprised of three teams, in the first week of October, who were still assigned to the same hospitals.
As of Monday night, Bacolod has recorded 4,213 confirmed Covid-19 cases, including 1,141 active cases, 2,982 recoveries, and 90 deaths. (PNA)
