Health workers infected with COVID-19 in Ilocos Norte hospital rise to 128

FILE PHOTO: A health worker in Ilocos Norte province administers a COVID-19 vaccine to a resident. (Photo courtesy of Ilocos Norte provincial government)

LAOAG CITY — The number of health workers infected with COVID-19 in Ilocos Norte’s public hospital rose to 128 on Friday, August 6, officials said.

At least 189 personnel of Mariano Marcos Memorial Hospital and Medical Center (MMMH&MC) in Batac City, the major COVID-19 treatment center in the province, are also in quarantine, Dr. Maria Lourdes Otayza, hospital chief, said during a television interview.

The hospital is actively recruiting health workers to augment its manpower who have been directly treating at least 142 COVID-19 patients admitted there as of Friday.

In an advisory, the hospital has also limited the number of face-to-face check-up hours in its out-patient clinics from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. from Mondays to Saturdays due to the continuous surge of COVID-19 cases and the alarming rise of its health workers being infected.

Patients have been advised to avail the online consultation services of the hospital, especially for those who have been referred to the internal medicine department which suspended face-to-face consultations for at least two weeks, it added.

According to the hospital’s management, suspect and probable COVID-19 patients would have to wait for longer hours inside their vehicles if their transfer to the hospital is not properly coordinated and when they do not carry their reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test results.

“The beds dedicated for suspect and probable COVID-19 patients are limited this time,” the hospital said.