Watchers prohibited at DCLMMRH indefinitely

By Dolly Yasa

 

BACOLOD City – Doña Corazon Locsin Montelibano Memorial Regional Hospital (DCLMMRH) chief Dr. Julius Drilon said there is no definite time when watchers will be allowed inside the government hospital to look after their patients.

Drilon has prohibited the watchers inside the hospital recently as a measure to contain the spread of the coronavirus disease 2019 or COVID-19.

Asked until when the watchers are “banned” from the regional hospital, Drilon told Daily Guardian “as long as prevalence rate of coronavirus disease 2019 or COVID-19 positives remains high.”

Drilon said they started to implement the policy recently after local transmission of the virus was noted to have become “very strong.”

He said 85 percent of the hospital staff contracted the virus from the community.

“The rate is too high,” Drilon lamented.

Because of this, relatives of the patients stayed on the streets outside the hospital.

They were assisted by Barangay 18 village chief Madeline Diaz and other barangay officials who put up tents and chairs for them.

They were also given food packs.

Negros Occidental Provincial Administrator Rayfrando Diaz said that the provincial government assisted the watchers who are from the province.

Drilon said they have to do this to protect the watchers, the healthcare workers, and the patients, because “right now, everybody is a suspected carrier of the virus.”