The city government and the public works department are now expanding the capacity of the Baguio City isolation unit at the former Sto. Niño Hospital to at least 400 beds by the end of October.
City Administrator Bonifacio dela Peña reported that the upgrading of the city’s isolation unit funded by the public works department amounting to P12 million was already awarded to the winning contactor and that the programmed works will commence the soonest to ensure the facility can accommodate additional Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients who are required to undergo isolation.
Currently, he admitted that the isolation unit’s capacity is up to a maximum of 90 beds but the city government augmented this with the conversion of the Baguio Teachers Camp triage facility into a temporary treatment and monitoring facility with some 129 beds.
Further, the city government and the public works department will complete the 16-bed isolation unit constructed within the Baguio Convention Center (BCC) grounds as an additional facility for the possible surge in confirmed COVID-19 cases.
The city administrator claimed the contractor of the improvement of the city’s isolation facility will work on the former Sto. Niño Hospital on a per floor basis to increase its capacity on a periodic basis until such time that the maximum capacity of 400 beds will be achieved preferably by the end of next month.
According to him, the city wants to ensure that the capacity of the city’s isolation unit will exceed the existing occupancy to prevent the possible congestion of the facility once there will be an unexpected surge in the number of patients because of the ongoing aggressive expanded testing and contact tracing.
He pointed out the city government wants to ensure that the capacity of the existing isolation units will not be overwhelmed when the city eases up on the tourism industry and accept visitors from Region I thus efforts are being done to complete the ongoing works that will guarantee the availability of the 400 isolation beds by October.
Mayor Benjamin B. Magalong requested the city administrator, in close coordination with other concerned offices of the city government, to conduct an ocular inspection of a facility in Irisan that could be converted as an additional isolation facility when the need arises so as not to overwhelm existing isolation units.
He explained it is important for the city to continue looking into other public or private structures that could be tapped as possible isolation facilities in the future as the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases remain unpredictable.
The present occupancy of the Baguio isolation unit and the Baguio Teachers Camp remain below the prescribed limit amidst the increasing number of cases to date.
By Dexter A. See