TACLOBAN CITY — Admission at the Samar Provincial Hospital (SPH) in Catbalogan City has tripled this week as more children in the province manifested symptoms of the dengue virus infection.
SPH chief Jonathan Paquit said their facility has been accommodating 300 patients, which is triple than its current 100-bed capacity. Majority of those confined are confirmed dengue victims.
Last week, the hospital treated 180 dengue patients and some of them have been discharged.
As of Thursday, about, 93 dengue patients remain in the hospital.
“We lack bed because of the surge of cases. We appeal to our patients to understand the situation because of this problem. Sometimes we ask patients to bring a folding bed with them because we can’t allow them to sleep on the floor,” Paquit told Philippine News Agency (PNA) on Thursday.
“We are fortunate that local officials in the province immediately declared a state of calamity for us to access funds to provide immediate needs of our dengue patients,” Paquit added.
The hospital management asked residents to immediately seek medical attention if they experience fever for more than two days. The SPH activated its dengue fast lane to deal with patients with symptoms of the mosquito-borne disease.
“Our appeal to the people is for them to consult a doctor if they have been suffering fever for two days or more, for us to assess their health condition,” he added.
SPH also activated its core team to enhance the “4S” strategy to address dengue. The “4S” include Search and destroy mosquito breeding places, Secure self-protection, Seek early consultation, and Support fogging/ spraying only in hot spot areas where an increase in cases is registered for two consecutive weeks to prevent an outbreak.
The Department of Health earlier announced the provision of additional manpower to augment the hospital’s human resource.
In a special session on August 3, the provincial board approved the resolution to put the entire province under a state of calamity as local health authorities recorded 1,855 cases from January to July this year. This is nearly double the 653 dengue cases recorded in 2018.(PNA)
