Palawan hospital to temporarily suspend certain services after 3 workers test positive for COVID-19

PUERTO PRINCESA CITY—The Ospital Ng Palawan (ONP) will temporarily suspend its operations on certain services starting Thursday (June 25), after three of its healthcare workers tested positive for the new coronavirus disease (COVID-19).

Dr. Audie Cipriano, chief of the medical professional staff of the ONP, said Sunday evening that the provincial hospital is already “undermanned” as contact tracing for the other personnel were being undertaken.

“Certain services of ONP like operating room and delivery room for such reasons that we need to quarantine our staff and decontamination of certain areas,” Cipriano said.

The ONP would also limit its admissions to “extreme emergencies” with no elective cases. Cipriano added, however, that the schedule is yet to be finalized as they have to “coordinate with other partners” to ensure medical service continuity.

“We’re already undermannned. We will coordinate with other partners. From Monday to Wednesday, we’re still functional,” Cipriano added.

The operating and delivery rooms would be temporarily suspended for a “minimum of three to four days” as healthcare workers would undergo quarantine pending results of their confirmatory tests.

Cipriano also called on the public to temper with “institutional discrimination” against the ONP staff.

Certain alleged discriminations against the ONP personnel were reported after the first “local transmission” was established linked by a female nurse who tested positive for COVID-19 on Friday.