Philippines “Already Lost” It’s Battle Against Covid

• The Philippines is “not losing” to Covid-19 – it has “already lost,” according to Dr. Jaime Almaro, President of the Philippine Hospital Association.
• Hospitals are currently “overrun and overwhelmed” as daily cases continue to rise.
• Almaro is now asking the government would send nurse reinforcements.

Philippine Hospital Association President Dr. Jaime Almora recently said in a media interview that the country is not losing its battle against the Covid-19 pandemic. “We have lost already,” he declared.

According to Almora, the rapid spread of coronavirus cases in the Philippines has led to the desperate situation with many hospitals refusing to receive more Covid-19 patients, particularly in Metro Manila.

“What we fear has happened. Our hospitals are overrun and overwhelmed,” Dr. Almora confessed, in a mix of English and Filipino. “We are not losing [against COVID]. We have lost already.”

Case in point, an unnamed old man recently died of Covid outside an emergency room after he was refused by several hospitals.

People are reportedly hospital-hopping to find vacancies in nearby provinces.

Almora further elaborated that this is mainly because many hospitals largely remain understaffed.

“When a hospital says that it is full they no longer have the capability, but it doesn’t necessarily mean they don’t have the capacity,” he pointed out. “If you’re talking about beds, there are beds available. What is missing are people who will take care of the patient.”

Part of the problem, the doctor said, is that some nurses themselves have died due to Covid. Now he’s asking the government for help.

“In a war, they’re in the firing line and they need reinforcement. We are asking the government’s various agencies who employed a lot of nurses who are doing non-nursing jobs to provide them to us as reinforcement,” he said.

Almora encouraged patients suffering mild symptoms of Covid to stay home and just seek medical advice via phone.

In March 29 alone, the country reported a total of 10,016 new cases – its highest so far since the pandemic began.