MANILA, Philippines – The Quezon City government has asked both private and public hospitals within its jurisdiction to follow the localized guidelines on the cremation of dead COVID-19 patients.
According to Mayor Joy Belmonte, health centers should comply with the national government’s standards, which require hospitals to cremate the body of a COVID-19 patient within 12 hours after death.
Hospitals are now mandated to assign people who would communicate with local government units, the relatives of the deceased patients, and the crematoria sites.
“We have crafted guidelines to make sure the cadavers are efficiently managed within our city,” Belmonte said in a statement. “The designated point person shall be responsible for reporting to the city government all unclaimed COVID-19 related deaths within a reasonable period of time.”
There are 14 national government hospitals in the city, some of which have been designated by the Department of Health (DOH) as referral hospitals for possible COVID-19 cases.
Quezon City also has several large private hospitals.
“After receiving the report from the hospital point person, the City Social Welfare and Development Department will determine if the deceased will be referred to the Baesa Crematorium if indigent or to funeral service providers accredited by the City,” the LGU said in the statement.
“If the deceased was not a resident of Quezon City, the point person will coordinate with the family of the deceased for the cremation,” they added. “In the absence of a relative, the point person will coordinate with the local government where the deceased resided to facilitate the processing of the cremation or burial.”
Quezon City has one of the highest COVID-19 incidences nationwide, with 942 patients confirmed infected with the latest coronavirus strain.
As the country now has 5,223 infected patients — 335 of which have already died while at least 295 have recovered — Quezon City’s cases account for 18 percent of the total number.
The recorded deaths in the city — now at 60 — also make up 17.9% of the total deaths nationwide.
Meanwhile, Belmonte also asked government hospitals to ensure that the bodies would be properly stored in a morgue, inside a freezer, while awaiting cremation, to prevent untimely decomposition and the spread of pathogens.
Belmonte’s request came after rumors circulated that unclaimed bodies had been piled up at the East Avenue Medical Center. The DOH admitted that there were 51 bodies remaining at the said hospital, although only 14 of them were COVID-19 patients.
/atm