Davao City Mayor Inday Sara Duterte has asked the health group of the COVID-19 Task Force to review the criteria of the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (MEID) on the implementation of the Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ) amid the city’s surge of COVID-19 cases.
The city’s current general community quarantine (GCQ) with heightened restrictions, set to end on September 7, has been extended by the IATF until September 30 via IATF Resolution No. 136-F.
“Sa ato sa COVID-19 Task Force, we asked the health group to look into the numbers and see kung pasok ba sya sa (if we fit the) criteria sa (of the) ECQ under the IATF criteria because on our own, we don’t have criteria. Nagahatag og community quarantine classification kay ang IATF (The community quarantine classification is being issued by the IATF),” Mayor Duterte said during her Special Hours program over 87.6 Davao City Disaster Radio (DCDR) held Monday afternoon, September 6.
As of September 5, Davao City has a total of 6,712 active cases, including the 586 logged on the same day.
The mayor, however, said the city’s action plan remains the same.
Mayor Duterte said, “You need to do testing. You need to do your tracing within 24 hours. And then you need to isolate or quarantine or if you need medical care sa ospital (at the hospital). That’s testing, tracing, quarantining or isolation, and treatment. Dili po na sya nagbag-o. Ang action plan dili na naga-change (It has not changed. The action plan never changes).”
She also bared that the city’s COVID-19 bed capacity is full in all hospitals. The Southern Philippines Medical Center (SPMC) has catered to patients more than its allotted or prepared beds.
Davao City has 3,084 COVID-19 beds and of this number, 2,500 are TTMF/isolation beds.
The Temporary Treatment and Monitoring Facilities (TTMFs), according to the local chief executive, has reached a 65 percent utilization rate and is even expected to be filled up depending on the turnover of cases.
“Every day, we still look for facilities na pwede natong iopen for TTMFs (that we can open for TTMFs),” she said, adding that 250 more TTMF beds are currently being set up.
Mayor Duterte also said that they are awaiting the request of the Davao Doctors Hospital to activate its COVID-19 home care program and its official guidelines will come from the Department of Health to also help in the city’s COVID-19 response. “Clearly, there’s a need for it right now because there is a surge of COVID-19 cases,” she said.
She also said that the possible extension of the SPMC emergency room to another location is also being eyed but the City Government of Davao, SPMC, and DOH will have yet to sit down and iron out the details.CIO
