Negros Occidental Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson and Bacolod Mayor Evelio Leonardia were informed Saturday, May 23, that the dedicated beds for COVID-19 patients at the Corazon Locsin Montelibano Memorial Regional Hospital in Bacolod City are nearing full capacity at 93 percent, Dr. Julius Drilon, CLMMRH chief said.
He said, in letters sent to Lacson and Leonardia, they were informed that CLMMRH has observed an increasing COVID-19 positivity rate at a range of 32.7 percent to 42.2 percent for the past two weeks.
CLMMRH has been accepting COVID-19 patients increasingly in the past few days that have an impact on the bed capacity, human resources for health and on the services of the hospital, Drilon said.
He also said six out of the seven Intensive Care Unit beds for COVID-19 patients are occupied, and the dedicated COVID-19 beds at the Emergency Department are also nearing full capacity.
As of May 22, the active COVID-19 cases among the hospital health care workers were 30, Drilon added.
The large figure of cases and the growing number of quarantined personnel is affecting the current operations of the hospital both in COVID and non-COVID areas, he said.
In terms of supply of medicines, CLMMRH has enough dexamethasone and enoxaparin being used as a standard treatment of COVID-19, but has a limited supply of Remdesivir and Tocilizumad, the officials were told.
CLMMRH will be limiting its admission of COVID-19 patients when it reaches full capacity in all dedicated COVID-19 beds and all potential patients may consider availing of the services of other hospitals in Negros Occidental, Drilon said.
The hospital will observe stricter implementation of the existing hospital policies and protocols to ensure adherence and compliance of all stakeholders, he added.*