Mandaue hospital extension almost finished: DGS

THE 67-bed capacity extension of the Mandaue City Hospital will soon start operation.

This after the Mandaue City government is about 95 percent close to completing the extension.

Once completed, the hospital’s extension building will help boost the city’s capacity to isolate more Covid-19 active cases.

The extension building is where the old Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority (TIEZA) was before.

Marivic Cabigas, head of Mandaue City’s Department of General Services (DGS), told SunStar Cebu that they have completed installing utilities and beds at the extension building.

Cabigas said they are cleaning the area to prepare for its turnover to Mayor Jonas Cortes on Tuesday, Aug. 31.

She said that by the time they will turn over the building, it is already good to use.

In a separate interview , Dr. Ligaya Dargantes, the patient care management team head of the city’s Emergency Operations Center (EOC), said that there are only 25 beds available at the Mandaue City Hospital and only 15 beds are dedicated for Covid-19.

But due to increasing Covid-19 cases, all beds are occupied by Covid-19 patients with moderate to severe symptoms, Dargantes said.

With the extension beds, Dargantes said this will serve as a step-down facility for Covid-19 patients who have mild to moderate symptoms but recovering from the virus and do not need consistent and immediate medical attention.

Dargantes said once the facility will start its operation those moderate to severe cases which needed oxygen support, IV lines, and antibiotics will be admitted to the Mandaue City Hospital while those who get to improve and only need oxygen support to recover will be transferred to the extension isolation facility.

She said there will still be doctors and nurses that will monitor the condition of the recovering symptomatic Covid-19 patients. (KFD)