THE Office of the Presidential Assistant for the Visayas (OPAV) sees the suspension of operations of one of the COVID-19 quarantine facilities as a welcome development.
The Bayanihan Cebu Sacred Heart School Field Center, which operates as an infirmary treating mild Covid-19 cases, has suspended operations as of October 1.
In a post on its Facebook page, Bayanihan Cebu PH explained that this decision was “due to the declining trend in Covid-19 cases in Cebu,”
Secretary Michael Lloyd Dino, Presidential Assistant for the Visayas, said this latest development shows a marked improvement in Cebu’s anti Covid-19 campaign.
Early on, OPAV, recognized the need for coordinated efforts in the fight against the pandemic. OPAV then rallied government and private sectors so they could come up with measures to prepare for the projected increase in the number of cases. This resulted in the creation of the Bayanihan Cebu PH.
It is a multi-sectoral partnership between the Office of the Presidential Assistant for the Visayas, Regional Development Council-Region 7, Department of Health Region 7, Sacred Heart School-Ateneo de Cebu, Society of Jesus of the Philippines, Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cebu, Cebu Caritas Inc., LH Foundation Inc. and Ramon Aboitiz Foundation Inc.
The measures included adding provisional health care capacity, acquisition of personal protective equipment and the conduct of mass testing to determine the prevalence of COVID-19 cases in the cities of Cebu, Mandaue and Lapu-Lapu.
“The (48-bed Bayanihan SHS) facility was built to address the congestion in Cebu hospitals caused by the rising cases of Covid-19,” OPAV Assistant Secretary Jonji Gonzales reported during the Laging Handa Network Briefing News.
Another facility, the 130-bed Bayanihan Cebu IEC Field Center, which is located International Eucharistic Congress (IEC) Convention Center along Pope John Paul II Ave., Cebu City, was also set up.
“Our collective efforts have paid off. The contribution of various sectors made this happen,” Secretary Dino said. He also lauded business sector, the medical frontliners, the Philippine National Police and the Armed Forces of the Philippines for their valuable contribution to the anti-Covid-19 campaign.
To recall, Cebu City once was considered the country’s Covid-19 hotspot but it has managed to flatten the curve in recent weeks, with proactive measures implemented to contain the infection.
Now, Cebu has even become a model for other cities in the country in terms of managing the Covid-19 crisis.
Following this development, Secretary Dino thanked the Chairman of Bayanihan Cebu PH, Edmun Liu for its continued support to the government in the fight against Covid-19.
“We have to give recognition to the private sector especially the businessmen who always make their initiatives possible for the general public. This is a very good example of a public private partnership,” said the Secretary.
DOH-7 has reported that Central Visayas now has a recovery rate is 89.28 percent as of October 8. It has a capacity utilization rate of 13.3 percent (12.1 percent for regular COVID beds and 22.5 percent of ICU Covid beds).
The availability of different Covid-19 health care requirements is: 78 percent for ICU beds; 67 percent for isolation beds; 70 percent for ward beds and 74 percent for ventilators.
Secretary Dino also thanked President Rodrigo Duterte and Senator Christopher Lawrence ‘Bong’ Go for their continued support for Cebu’s fight against the Covid-19 pandemic.
“While the government continues to be proactive in our fight against the Covid-19 crisis, this is definitely good news. It shows that we are making real progress in the interventions we have done in this battle,” Secretary Dino said.
“In fact, we are bringing the best practices that have been done in Cebu to other areas in the Visayas to help them manage their rising cases of Covid-19. OPAV has been leading this initiative,” Dino said.
Now, Cebu has even become a model for other cities in the country in terms of managing the Covid-19 crisis.
The Bayanihan Cebu SHS facility started accepting patients in the first week of May. At the time, Cebu was placed under the enhanced community quarantine because of the high number of cases.
Based on Bayanihan Cebu’s data, the SHS facility had 99 recovered Covid-19 patients. On the other hand, there are 179 recovered patients from the IEC facility, as of October 4.
The Bayanihan SHS facility endorsed the remaining Covid-19 patients to the Bayanihan Cebu IEC Field Center, which is located International Eucharistic Congress (IEC) Convention Center along Pope John Paul II Ave., Cebu City.
Bayanihan Cebu, however, explained that they would reactivate the SHS facility if the need would arise and there will be an increase in the number of Covid-19 patients that have to be quarantined.
In the meantime, a minimal number of staff will still be assigned to the closed facility for its proper maintenance./PR