BY NANETTE L. GUADALQUIVER
The Bacolod City government has established the “One Hospital Command Center” as part of its strengthened response to bring down local cases of coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19).
City Administrator Em Ang announced the development Monday night after a coordination meeting led by Dr. Hector Gayares Jr., medical deputy of the Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Task Force, and Ma. Carmela Gensoli, city health officer, held at the Bacolod City Government Center.
On her Facebook post, Ang said the facility includes a call center, which will be manned by agents for teleconsult and education.
Teams will also be assigned to coordinate hospital admissions and hospital transfers from out-of-town, and manage medical transport and data analytics, she added.
The One Hospital Command Center is part of the best practices of Cebu City being adopted by Bacolod City to reduce its Covid-19 cases, which already reached 2,634, as of Monday. These include 1,042 recoveries, 1,557 active cases, and 35 deaths.
During her visit to Bacolod, Dr. Mary Jean Leroche, chief pathologist of Department of Health in Central Visayas, underscored the collaborative efforts between and among the public and private hospitals.
As such, Level 1 hospitals were utilized as “step down facilities” for mild cases while Level 2 and 3 hospitals accommodated moderate and critical cases.
Last week, the city government also formed the EOC Task Force to strengthen efforts in synchronizing and harmonizing its data gathering and other activities.
The EOC, which is based at the MassKara Hall of the Bacolod City Government Center, operates 24/7.
Headed by Mayor Evelio Leonardia, the task force is tasked to closely supervise and monitor the overall operations and actions of the EOC.
Among the tasks include defining clear objectives and plans and providing precise insights towards Covid-19 interventions as well as to establish an advisory group to provide policy and guidance to the EOC and ensure the crafting of its terms of reference.*PNA
