Due to reaching full capacity, the Philippine General Hospital (PGH) restricted the number of patients who could receive care in its emergency room on Thursday.

As reported in “Saksi,” PGH spokesperson Jonas del Rosario stated that the number of patients in the emergency room at the hospital hit an “extremely overcrowded” level.

The surge in emergency room patients resulted in an inadequate supply of oxygen tubes.

Del Rosario mentioned that they needed to enforce “code triage,” where acute or life-threatening emergencies would take precedence, according to the report.

“We hope that within a week, the issue will be resolved. Once our problem is solved, we will inform the public again that the overcapacity situation has ended,” stated Del Rosario.

(We’re looking forward to resolving this issue within a week. After the problem is addressed, we’ll inform everyone that the excess capacity has been eliminated.)

The Department of Health has already worked with PGH to move the remaining patients to 20 of its approved hospitals.

Quoting the PGH administration, the DOH stated that there is no “uncommon or hazardous cause” behind the surge in patient numbers and suggested that these figures might “decline within a few days.”

Health Secretary Teodoro Herbosa mentioned that they are currently in discussions with UP-PGH about potentially transferring their present patients to DOH facilities.

“Every hospital, clinic, ambulance, and doctor has been instructed not to admit new patients at UP-PGH; instead, they should take them initially to DOH hospitals,” he further stated.

People were told to contact the DOH Metro Manila Center for Health Development using the mobile numbers 0956-1753710 or 0920-2511800 prior to transporting a patient to one of the designated hospitals.

Below are the hospitals approved by the DOH in Metro Manila:

The Dr. Jose N. Rodriguez Memorial Hospital and Health Facility

Las Pinas General Hospital along with its Satellite Trauma Center

St. Lorenzo Ruiz General Hospital

Philippine National Center for Mental Health

Jose Fabella Memorial Hospital

Reyes Jose R. Medical City Hospital

San Lazaro Hospital

Tondo Medical Center

Amang Rodriguez Memorial Medical Center

Tropical Medicine Research Institute

Rizal Medical Center

East Avenue Medical Center

National Children’s Hospital

Philippine Orthopedic Center

Quirino Memorial Medical Center

Philippines Lung Center

National Kidney and Transplant Institute

Philippine Heart Center

Philippine Children’s Medical Center

Valenzuela Medical Center


— Mariel Celine Serquiña and Vince Angelo Ferreras from BAP, GMA Integrated News

This article
To address overcrowding, PGH restricts emergency room admissions; DOH offers additional support.
was originally published in
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