COVID-19 patients with mild, moderate symptoms now accepted at IC3

CEBU, Philippines — The IC3 Convention Center will be used as temporary treatment monitoring and isolation facility starting this month.

This is the second time the IC3 will be used as such amid the spike in COVID-19 cases. The center was also converted as vaccination site last year.

With the recent spike in COVID-19 cases in Cebu City, authorities deemed it prudent to prepare for temporary isolation facilities to prevent health facilities from being overwhelmed.

The Office of the Presidential Assistant for the Visayas (OPAV), which is spearheading the reconversion of the IC3, has extended its heartfelt gratitude and sincere appreciation to the Archdiocese of Cebu through Archbishop Jose S. Palma for allowing the government again to use their property for free.

The IC3 will accept COVID-19 patients with mild and moderate symptoms. It will be managed and operated by the Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center (VSMMC) with the support of the Cebu City Government, the Inter-Agency Task Force for Emerging Diseases - Visayas (IATF-Visayas), the Department of Health - Region 7 (DOH 7) and private sector partners.

It will have a 120-bed treatment and isolation facility that will provide medical care for asymptomatic, mild and moderate COVID-19 patients starting this month until January 31, 2023.

This is expected to help augment the healthcare capacity of Cebu, as the current COVID Capacity Utilization Rates (CCUR) for both public and private hospitals in Cebu remain at high levels due to the ongoing Omicron-driven surge.

The facility will help decongest the allocated COVID-19 beds in the public and private hospitals in Cebu and focus more on the treatment of severe and critical patients,

 “While it is our fervent hope that the current Omicron surge and threats of other variant-driven surges are mitigated as soon as possible,” OPAV said in a statement.

“OPAV continues to provide needed assistance for our fellow Cebuanos, as we continue to rise above this current health crisis on top of our ongoing post-Typhoon Odette recovery efforts,” said OPAV Secretary Michael Dino. — FPL (FREEMAN)