PGH restricts non-COVID admissions as patient count reaches record high

MANILA, Philippines — A Philippine General Hospital spokesperson on Sunday said they will halt admitting non-COVID patients as they direct more personnel and resources to tend to an increasing number of coronavirus patients. 

Dr. Jonas del Rosario told dZMM's "Teleradyo" that the hospital can only admit those with "life and limb threatening" emergencies such as persons with trauma from accidents, as well as cases of massive stroke and heart attack.

He said PGH, the country's largest COVID-19 referral facility, how has admitted 262 coronavirus patients. 

"Our bed capacity is only 250 so we're way past that," Del Rosario said in Filipino. "So we decided to open more wards, and that includes the non-COVID part because we need other staff to serve those sick with COVID."

The PGH official noted they have suspended admissions for non-virus cases in the past, but the 262 count is the most COVID-19 patients it has had in the 18 months it has been a referral facility. 

Del Rosario said they have since increased the number of allocated beds to 300. 

"Our record was 241 or less than 250," he added. "We thought 250 would be enough but with 262 now and others more incoming, easily we can probably reach, but hopefully not, the 300 mark."

The hospital's move came as the Philippines grapples with a new uptick in cases that experts said may be driven by the highly infectious Delta variant. 

In the last four days, the country saw tens of thousands more infected. Saturday's 14,249 new cases was the second highest since the pandemic hit last year.

Still, health officials have refused to call it a surge, despite several private facilities last week also reporting they have met full capacity for COVID-19 patients. 

"It appears COVID admissions will not yet slow down," Del Rosario said. 'We are also the go-to hospital for the pregnant infected and that's a huge group, children with COVID and of course, the adults."

PGH's intensive care unit has 40 beds for virus patients, all of which remain occupied, he added. 

In their pediatric ICU, Del Rosario said they have increased beds to 12 from the original 8. But he added the additional beds may soon be occupied, as four more kids need to be admitted.

All outpatient services in the hospital will be closed indefinitely starting Monday, August 16. 

PGH said its Department of Opthalmology and Visual Sciences, as well as its Cancer Institute, will remain open. It also advised patients to opt for telemedicine consultation in the meantime. — Christian Deiparine