BACOLOD City – Two hospitals here received 20 units of convalescent plasma from the Sub-National Blood Center for Visayas based in Cebu City.
They were given to the Dr. Pablo O. Torre Memorial Hospital (Riverside Medical Center) and the Adventist Medical Center-Bacolod.
Retired Major General Melquiades Feliciano, deputy chief implementer of the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF)-Visayas, turned over the convalescent plasma to officials of the Bacolod City Emergency Operations Center (EOC) on Wednesday.
According to the Department of Health (DOH), the plasma of persons who have recovered from coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) contains antibodies that can be transferred to critically-ill COVID-19 patients.
DOH, however, emphasized that blood plasma donations should be done voluntarily and should go through the official process to ensure the safety of both recipients and donors.
Earlier, members of the city council passed a resolution appealing to all COVID-19 patients in this city to donate blood plasma.
The said resolution authored by Councilor Em Ang also requested Mayor Evelio Leonardia to grant financial assistance to probable donors.
Ang said COVID-19 cases in this city are decreasing.
As of Wednesday night, Bacolod had 4,266 confirmed COVID-19 cases of which, 3,164 or 74.17 percent recovered. The city has also recorded 1,008 active cases (23.63 percent) and 94 deaths (2.2 percent)./PN
