MOBILE HOSPITAL TO RISE IN RIZAL PARK

A temporary mobile hospital and drive-through vaccination site will soon rise in Rizal Park after the Department of Tourism (DoT) gave its nod to the project.

Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat announced that the Board of Directors of the National Parks Development Committee approved the proposal of Manila Mayor Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso to build a temporary hospital at the Burnham Green in Rizal Park and

a drive-through vaccination site at the Independence Road (Parade Grounds) of the Quirino Grandstand.

“The DoT has repurposed its tourism sites to support the current efforts to protect the public’s health and safety during this crisis,” Romulo-Puyat said. “These facilities will be open to all, not just the residents of Manila.”

The mobile hospital will cater to patients with mild to moderate symptoms of Covid-19 while the vaccination site is expected to cater to 350 to 400 individuals daily.

Domagoso pledged to restore the Burnham Green area back to its original condition after the facility ran its course.

The mayor also committed to design, construct, maintain and manage the facilities at no cost to the national government.

Rizal Park is one of the largest urban parks in Metro Manila, which is also a major tourist destination.

More modular hospitals

Sen. Christopher Lawrence “Bong” Go on Wednesday reiterated his appeal to concerned agencies to fast track the expansion and construction of additional modular hospitals equipped with isolation facilities and intensive care unit beds to address the rising number of Covid-19 cases in the country, especially in Metro Manila and neighboring provinces.

“Let us not wait for our sick countrymen to die outside hospitals. Let us do everything now to save and treat them,” the senator said in Filipino.

“I laud the continuing efforts of the government to provide more isolation facilities for people with mild and moderate Covid-19 cases; however, the need for more facilities that can handle severe and critical conditions must also be considered,” he stressed.

Go also urged the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. to expedite its payments and settle its obligations with hospitals to ensure the unhampered provision of medical services. Both private and public hospitals in the NCR Plus area have committed to use the funds to purchase more ICU beds.