LA TRINIDAD, Benguet – The municipal government will be purchasing a substantial number of oxygen tanks that will be made available when there will be a great demand for the same as part of the town’s aggressive anti-Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) response in the light of the ongoing surge in cases triggered by the presence of Delta variant cases.
Mayor Romeo K. Salda stated that the local government will source out the funds for the purchase of the oxygen tanks from the local disaster risk reduction and management funds to ensure the immediate procurement of the same which is needed by the health facilities for patients that need the oxygen to recover from the infection.
He added that the local government needs to stockpile oxygen tanks because of the increasing demand for oxygen supply from the different health facilities and isolation centers that will aid the moderate and severe patients to recover after having been infected with the virus.
The local chief executive admitted that there is already a huge demand for oxygen from the various health facilities and isolation centers in the municipality because of the increasing number of COVID-19 patients that are required to undergo quarantine and isolation procedures to be able to recover from the said infection.
According to him, the presence of the oxygen tanks will surely be helpful in storing sufficient supply of oxygen that could immediately be deployed to the health facilities and isolation centers once there will be a demand for the same which will be used by COVID-19 and other patients to recover from the infection and other related illnesses.
Salda stipulated that the purchase of the additional oxygen tanks will be part of the local government’s contribution to ensure the stability of oxygen supply in the municipality following the sudden increase in the demand for the same due to the surge in COVID-19 cases as a result of the presence of the Delta variant in the municipality that caused the untimely demise of a patient.
The mayor asserted that the local government has to spare available funds for the continued purchase of the needed equipment, supplies and materials to further enhance the town’s anti-COVID-19 response.
While the various health facilities and isolation centers have reached their maximum capacity because of the recent surge in COVID-19 cases, the mayor stipulated that the local government and the concerned government agencies are still on top of the situation and that efforts are being done to mitigate the effects of the surge in cases to the overall state of the local health care system so that future cases could still have a decent quarantine or isolation center to be given the appropriate attention.
Mayor Salda expressed his gratitude to the concerned sectors in the municipality for their continuous support to the local government in giving appropriate attention to the increasing number of COVID-19 patients and for always being at the forefront in responding to the needs of the people during the pandemic that started more than one year and a half ago. By HENT