Swamped by Covid patients, the Philippines’ largest public hospital closes the doors to its E.R.
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Version 0 of 1. The Philippines’ largest public hospital has been so overwhelmed by a continuous stream of coronavirus patients that it temporarily stopped accepting patients at its emergency room on Tuesday. The Philippine General Hospital’s decision came a day after the health department reported 18,332 new cases on Monday, a new daily high for the country. On Tuesday, 12,067 were recorded, with the country’s total number of reported cases exceeding 1.8 million. “We ask for your understanding,” the hospital said in its in a statement. It said more than 100 of its 230 Covid-19 patients were in intensive care and needing high-flow oxygen and ventilators. It said admitting more patients at this stage would place both patients and hospital workers in danger. The hospital serves more than half a million patients a year, providing health care services to majority of the country’s poor. Hospitals designated for Covid-19 have been reporting high caseloads since the beginning of August, fueled by the more infectious Delta variant. The government said on Monday that it had detected 466 new cases of the Delta variant, bringing to 1,273 the total number of those known to be infected with this variant. It had also detected community transmissions of Delta in the capital, Manila. On Tuesday, the presidential spokesman Harry Roque again appealed to the public to have themselves vaccinated as more shots arrive in the country. “While cases are going up, it is true that we are now in the critical warning stage,” Mr. Roque told an online press forum, adding that the intensive care unit beds available in Manila were now nearly full. “72 percent of all I.C.U. beds in Metro Manila are now in use,” he said, adding that the same trend was happening nationwide, with nearly half of available ventilators also in use. “It is understandable given the Delta variant, but we need to increase the use of masks, to wash hands and if possible, get vaccinated.” In other news from around the globe: Greece announced new measures meant to push more people to get vaccinated and to head off a renewed spike in infections from the Delta variant. Among them: People who have neither been vaccinated nor show proof that they recovered from a Covid-19 infection will be barred from barred from restaurants, cafes, clubs and sporting venues, the country’s health minister announced. Unvaccinated workers, especially in the tourism industry, will have to undergo frequent testing at their own expense, paying 10 euros ($12) a test — a sizable amount in a country where the average worker earns about $1,300, a month. About 52 percent of Greece’s population has been vaccinated so far. The new measures take effect Sept. 13. The health watchdog in France has recommended a third vaccine dose for immunocompromised people and those 65 or older. They will be eligible for the booster shot beginning in September, but must be at least six months away from their last vaccination. New reported cases in the country are averaging more than 20,000 daily, but have been falling in recent days. The United States and Israel are already implementing booster vaccination campaigns. Léontine Gallois and Niki Kitsantonis contributed reporting. |