ILOILO – The healthcare utilization rate (HCUR) of 12 district hospitals and the Iloilo Provincial Hospital is now at 65.19 percent, according to the Provincial Health Office (PHO).
HCUR refers to the occupancy of beds dedicated to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases. These could be COVID ward beds, isolation beds, Intensive Care Unit beds, and even mechanical ventilators.
A high HCUR means hospital beds for COVID-19 cases are getting scarce, and the hospitals are getting overwhelmed with patients.
The 65.19 percent HCUR is equivalent to 412 beds out of the 632 beds allotted to COVID-19 cases in the district hospitals and Iloilo Provincial Hospital.
“Our HCUR is still (at) moderate (risk) because it is still below 70 percent,” said Dr. Maria Socorro Colmenares-Quiñon, PHO chief.
The goal, according to Quiñon, is to keep the HCUR low.
How? By observing the health protocols.
“Mag-masks, Manghinaw. Magdistansya. Magpabakuna,” said Quiñon.
She also encouraged people to eat nutritious food, sleep early, take Vitamin C, and eat fruits and vegetables to strengthen the immune system.
When exhibiting flu-like symptoms such as runny nose, cough and fever, people should immediately self-isolate, added Quiñon.
PHO data also showed the province recording an average of 118 new COVID-19 cases per day this month.
From Jan. 1 to 24, Iloilo recorded 2,839 new cases – a sharp rise from the 214 cases recorded last month (December 2021).
“Grabe pagtimbook,” said Quiñon.
As for the average daily attack rate (ADAR), from Dec. 24, 2021 to Jan. 6, 2022 the province posted 0.66 percent but from Jan. 7, 2022 to Jan. 20, 2022 this soared to 6.58 percent.
This is the reason why Iloilo is classified a “high risk” area, said Quiñon.
As of Jan. 24, Iloilo had 2,961 active COVID-19 cases. The death toll, on the other hand, reached 1,099 died.
Iloilo province is currently under Alert Level 3 like the rest of Western Visayas due to surging COVID-19 infections./PN
