Roque claims ‘no special treatment’
I can assure you that like all hospitals, the basis for admission is you need to be a moderate or severe case
Presidential spokesperson Secretary Harry Roque yesterday maintained he did not pull strings to get admitted at Philippine General Hospital (PGH), saying his “bad shape” last week warranted hospital confinement.
Roque, who contracted a second coronavirus infection, denied speculations he had received “special treatment” at the state-run facility amid the scarcity of available rooms for patients seeking medical attention.
“No one can throw his weight around here in PGH. When my doctors allowed me to get admitted, it was because my condition merited the admission,” Roque said in a televised briefing.
“I can assure you that like all hospitals, the basis for admission is you need to be a moderate or severe case. In my case, I was in bad shape when I was admitted,” he added.
Roque’s confinement elicited criticism amid reports of patients dying outside hospital emergency rooms while waiting for admission, as several facilities reached full capacity due to a fresh surge in coronavirus cases.
The official assured he did not use his position as President Rodrigo Duterte’s spokesperson to secure a bed in the state-run hospital, but he touted that all of his doctors — also his colleagues in the University of Philippines — are working there long before he joined the government.
“My doctors wanted me admitted because my condition warranted admission,” he said.
He also said his connections also ran “deep” in PGH since he is a member of an association of those who were born there and “supporting” the facility.
Roque said the query on how he was able to secure a hospital bed for Covid-19 treatment was “unchristian,” arguing that it implied that people who were confined in medical facilities played dirty.
“It is unchristian because it seems that if you get a hospital bed during this time, you played dirty and hoodwinked another person,” he said.
Earlier in the day, Manila Bishop Broderick Pabillo said it was “uncalled for” to tag the question as “unchristian.”
“How was that unchristian? It was an innocent question,” Pabillo said in a radio interview.
“Public figures must be transparent in answering questions,” the prelate added.
On Saturday, Roque said he was admitted to the hospital “at the right time since pneumonia was caught early on,” adding that he felt better after taking a vial of Remdesivir and steroids. victims In line with his commitment to help victims of disasters and other emergency situations, the Office of Senator Christopher ‘Bong’ Go on Monday, 12 April, conducted relief activities in two fire-hit communities in Metro Manila, in coordination with the Department of Social Welfare and Development and the concerned local governments. Senator Go’s team provided financial assistance, meals, vitamins, masks and face shields to each affected household, which included one family in Barangay Dagat-Dagatan, Caloocan City, and one family in Barangay Roxas, Quezon City. In a video message to the families, Go offered to assist any beneficiary suffering from injuries or other health concerns, and advised residents in need of medical assistance to visit their local Malasakit Center. Each activity was carried out in strict compliance with the government protocols against Covid-19.