Smart provides free WiFi for COVID-19 healthcare facilities

MANILA, Philippines — As part of its efforts to equip coronavirus disease 2019 or COVID-19 medical frontliners with reliable data connectivity, PLDT wireless subsidiary  Smart Communications, Inc. is providing fast, free and 24/7 Smart WiFi to several major newly-activated COVID-19 facilities.

Smart has rolled out carrier-grade fiber-powered Smart WiFi at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium at the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex, the Philippine International Convention Center Tent and the World Trade Center.  These large venues  have  been converted into COVID-19 treatment facilities that will handle patients under monitoring (PUMs) and patients under investigation (PUIs).

Smart has also installed Wifi connectivity at the La Salle Greenhills campus in Mandaluyong which now houses health workers from nearby hospitals.

These WiFi installations, which have a capacity of one Gigabyte per second, are the latest in PLDT-Smart’s efforts to provide communications support to frontline agencies and their personnel such as the departments of health, transportation, public works, the armed forces and police, local governments and non-governmental organizations in different parts of the country.

“These new quarantine sites will decongest hospitals in Metro Manila, thus reducing community transmission while protecting our health care workers.  We’d like to thank Smart for providing high-speed WiFi.  This will help  the facility managers to coordinate with one another as well as  patients so that they can keep in touch with their families and  loved ones,” said Public Works Secretary Mark Villar.

“A major focus of our activities at PLDT and Smart this time is to arm frontliners in the fight against COVID with strong connectivity and innovative digital tools.  We look forward to more of this type of collaboration with government and non-governmental organizations,” said Manuel V. Pangilinan, chairman and CEO of PLDT.  

Smart WiFi connectivity is also available in provincial capitols, city and municipal halls across the country which are being used as a base of operations for local government logistics, transportation and relief, as well as in hospitals, supermarkets and convenience stores.