MANILA - The Southern Philippines Medical Center in Davao City has doubled its ICU bed capacity to accommodate more patients, as the number of coronavirus infections surged in the area.

In an interview on TeleRadyo, Dr. Ricardo Audan, medical chief of SPMC said their ICU remains at full capacity. They have already converted private wards to expand their ICU capacity from 35 to 87 beds.

“As of now 87 yung ICU, full talaga ang ICU. Yung isolation beds natin for COVID, we have 312 beds and na-occupy as of yesterday is 306, that is 98 percent,” Audan said.

(As of now our ICU is really full. Of the 312 isolation beds for COVID, 306 have been occupied as of yesterday, that is 98 percent.)

• ICU beds at Southern Philippines Medical Center fully occupied

Most of their patients come from Davao City, he said, where a much stricter quarantine status has been imposed Friday to curb the spread of the virus.

Aside from the ICU, Audan said they will be also extending their emergency room to cater to the growing number of patients needing immediate care.

“Yung lobby ng OPD gawin naming extension ng emergency room but yung ilalagay doon it has to be non infectious, non COVID, simple trauma para lang ma decongest yung main ER,” he said.

(The OPD lobby will become and extension of the emergency room but it will only cater to non infectious, non COVID, simple trauma to decongest the main ER.)

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