- MITCH M. LIPA
With nine days more to go before this month ends, the number of Bacolodnons who have died due to the coronavirus disease reached 80, and surpassed the all-time high monthly mortality recorded by the Emergency Operations Center in September 2020.
EOC executive director Em Ang said that the 80 deaths recorded from Sept. 1 to 21 exceeded the 76 deaths for the whole of September 2020. The third highest mortality record was in June 2021 with 64.
The EOC also noticed a pattern among the new COVID patients, Ang said. From Sept. 1 to 21, there were 2,108 new patients while in September 2020, the total cases reached 2,605. The highest one-month record of active infections was June 2021 with 3,557. Ang said that was the time when the city experienced the second wave of COVID.
At present, the average daily new cases in Bacolod reached 100.
The EOC also noticed a severity of infection among new patients, particularly for the unvaccinated. Most of the patients experienced a sudden progress of symptoms and were often already under severe condition when they consult a doctor after they experienced shortness of breath.
The EOC reminds the public that the Bacolod Respiratory Center at the BAYS Center is open Mondays to Fridays for free consultation and free swab tests if needed and as per recommendation of the doctors on duty.
The EOC, meanwhile, is preparing the logistics for the conversion of the Midway Facility in Barangay Alijis into a field hospital.
This is to provide rooms for severe and mild COVID patients waiting to be admitted to hospitals.
Several private hospitals in Bacolod and the Corazon Locsin Montelibano Memorial Regional Hospital earlier announced that the allotted beds for COVID patients were already full due to the recent spike in the number of patients with severe symptoms.
The Midway Facility is a 64-room air-conditioned accommodation with individual comfort rooms, constructed by the Department of Public Works and Highways as its contribution to the fight against COVID-19.
Its conversion into a step-up facility will help patients who need regular monitoring of their conditions, particularly those needing oxygen, Ang said. – MML
