PGH reaches 100% occupancy in ICU beds for COVID-19 patients

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine General Hospital (PGH) has reached full capacity of its intensive care unit (ICU) for COVID-19 patients amid the wave of infections that is again pushing hospitals to increase their bed capacity, its spokesperson said Saturday.

According to Dr. Jonas Del Rosario, the PGH currently has 30 ICU beds for patients suffering from COVID-19.

“Ngayon po, ang amin pong ICU ay puno. One hundred percent occupied ang ICU for COVID. (Right now, our ICU is full. The ICU beds for COVID-19 patients are 100 percent occupied),” he said at the Laging Handa public briefing.

“We are probably about 80 percent of our [bed] occupancy now. But dahil kami ay COVID referral center at marami sa aming mga pasyente ay talaga namang may mga non-COVID concerns at nagkaka-COVID lang sila along the way, tinatanggap pa rin namin sila kaya expandable naman as per need daily,” he added.

(We are probably at about 80 percent of our bed occupancy. But because we are a COVID-19 referral center and many of our patients have non-COVID concerns and just get COVID-19 along the way, we still accept them. That’s why the occupancy is expandable according to the daily need.)

Del Rosario said the PGH is currently reconverting some of its non-COVID wards to COVID wards to meet the demand for more beds.

According to Del Rosario, 255 COVID-19 patients are currently admitted at the hospital.

“Kapag tinitingnan namin ang proportion ng vaccinated and unvaccinated, halos pareho lang, mga 50-50. May 50 percent vaccinated and 50 percent unvaccinated. Tapos ‘yung sa critical or severe na cases, hati din, unvaccinated and vaccinated,” he noted.

(When we look at the proportion of the vaccinated and unvaccinated, it’s almost 50-50. There’s 50 percent vaccinated and 50 percent unvaccinated. The proportion is also the same for critical and severe cases.)

“But ang isang tinitingnan namin sa datos, kasi marami sa mga pasyente ngayon na dumadating ay marami ang mild, marami kaming fully vaccinated patients na iba ang sakit nila kaya sila nagpupunta sa PGH. May iba pa silang dinadaing or ordinarily ay may iba silang sakit, kaya lang it turns out ay positive sila sa COVID.”

(But when we looked at the data, we noticed that we have many fully vaccinated patients who have other diseases; that’s why they go to PGH. They have other diseases but it turns out they are positive for COVID-19.)

“Hindi talaga ang COVID ang nagpalala sa kanila kundi mayroon silang sakit, versus sa mga unvaccinated, ‘yung COVID ang malala sa kanila,” Del Rosario said.

(It’s not COVID that made their condition worse. But for the unvaccinated, it was COVID-19 that made their condition worse.)

Del Rosario also noted that only a few patients with respiratory problems or those who experience extreme difficulty in breathing are being admitted at the PGH.

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