Hospitals required to submit data Hospitals required to submit data

MANILA, Philippines — Public and private hospitals are required to regularly submit bed occupancy and other relevant data to the Department of Health.

DOH Undersecretary Leopoldo Vega said all hospitals will transmit the desired information in “real time” to allow the government to identify and immediately address problems.

“The challenge really here for us is to have a very good, precise or appropriate data in real time. This is when the encoders in the different private and pubic hospitals are able to give the data to be collated by the DOH in terms of the data collect and the bed capacity trackers,” Vega said at a press conference following the launching of the one hospital command center (OHC) yesterday.

The OHC, Vega said, will not only allow coordinated care, but also strengthen the country’s health system capacity by identifying where patients can be accommodated.

“One hospital command center. Its sole purpose is to manage the allocation of hospitals in Metro Manila. In the next few days, we will be establishing One Hospital Command Center in other regions,” Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said. The defense chief chairs the National Task Force against COVID-19.

Based on DOH data, more than half or about 53 percent of hospital beds, including ICU beds nationwide, were already occupied as of Aug. 4.

Vega said a closer look at admissions in both government and private hospitals showed that a greater bulk or about 70 percent of COVID patients were mild and asymptomatic.

He called on hospitals to refer mild and asymptomatic COVID cases to isolation facilities and focus on patients with severe symptoms of the infection.

“It’s the only way to decongest our hospitals and this could mean lower case fatality ratio,” Vega pointed out.

According to Vega, the DOH is also undertaking massive recruitment of healthcare workers to provide relief to medical frontliners in dire need of rest.

At the end of the two-week modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ) in Metro Manila and nearby regions, Vega said the government’s response to the pandemic shall have improved.

The DOH is in constant discussion with medical societies concerning identified critical areas needing improvement in the healthcare system.  – With Marc Jayson Cayabyab, Romina Cabrera

Meanwhile, the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) has converted its sports arena to a command center to coordinate referrals of COVID-19 cases to  available hospitals.

“We will not neglect this especially because the command center is in our own backyard. We are ready to respond as part of the team,” MMDA chairman Danny Lim said.

MMDA general manager Jojo Garcia said designating MMDA Arena as command center is the agency’s contribution to efforts to reduce COVID-19 deaths.

The country’s chief COVID-19 response implementor Gen. Carlito Galvez Jr. said the command center would help reduce the waiting time for patients to be treated. –  Marc Jayson Cayabyab, Romina Cabrera