Modular Covid hospital to rise in Bataan town

OF SAN FERNANDO, Pampanga – A modular hospital will soon rise within the Mariveles Mental Wellness and General Hospital (MMWGH) compound in Barangay Poblacion, Mariveles, Bat aan .

The construction of the PHP23.85-million facility is in line with the efforts of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) to increase the number of hospital beds dedicated to coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) patients in Central Luzon.

The project, to be implemented by the Bataan 2nd District Engineering Office, will start before the end of this month and is expected to be completed by November this year.

Ulysses C. Llado, district engineer of the Bataan 2nd District Engineering Office, said the DPWH saw the urgent need for additional health facilities in the area after health experts tagged the municipality of Mariveles as very high risk for Covid-19 due to the continued rise in daily average cases since July this year.

“Our office immediately coordinated with the local government of Mariveles and the Department of Health and proposed the construction of a modular hospital within the MMWGH,” Llado said in a social media post on Thursday.

The hospital, he said, will be equipped with ventilation systems, oxygen lines, and air condition units. It will also have a booth for nurses along the hallway, a separate nursing station and pantry for medical front-liners.

Last February, the Bataan 2nd District Engineering Office turned over to the local government of Mariveles three units of isolation facilities with a total worth of PHP41.9 million.

"We are aware that due to the increasing number of individuals affected by the virus, we will be needing additional health facilities to augment the number of Covid-19 dedicated beds in Bataan," Llado sai d.

Aside from the modular hospital at MMWGH, the Bataan 2nd District Engineering Office also proposed to build similar structures at Mariveles District Hospital and Bataan General Hospital and Medical Center. ( PNA)