Dormitories for frontliners at the Lung Center of the Philippines in Quezon City were completed Friday while other facilities that are under construction in three different sites in Luzon are expected to be completed by the end of July and mid-August.
The Department of Public Works and Highways turned over the two cluster dormitories for healthcare workers at the LCP.
DPWH Undersecretary Emil Sadain said the two remaining Clusters 5 and 6 dormitory at the Quezon Memorial Circle in Quezon City, on the other hand, are expected to be completed by mid-August. These are part of the four cluster dormitories recently completed within the site.
The 32-bed off-site dormitory structure in Pampanga intended for frontliners of the Jose B. Lingad Memorial Hospital in San Fernando City is targeted for completion on July 30.
Sadain, who heads the DPWH Task Force to Facilitate Augmentation of Local and National Healthcare Facilities, said that the dormitory facilities at the Lung Center “will greatly alleviate the lack of medical doctors’ quarters at the hospital being one of the major government hospitals handling the inevitable surges in sick patients.”
“With the offsite dormitories, Lung Center doctors, nurses, and other medical staff who are constantly exposed to a variety of health hazards in the course of their work won’t have to travel home or stay in hotel after their hospital duty for the much needed quick rest,” Sadain added.
Each cluster dormitory has 16 airconditioned rooms equipped with double-deck beds to accommodate two persons with toilet and bath with heater. The room can also be used as an individual isolation room for possible monitoring and treatment of sick medical staff.
The dormitory has a living room, TV and sofa, common dining, and a separate area for laundry and kitchen with available appliances.
The DPWH task force is also undertaking site inspections, validations, and coordination for possible setting up of additional health facilities and isolation sites at Quezon Institute, the DPWH Undersecretary said.
Construction of 10 health facility projects is already under way in Cebu and 16 facilities in Eastern Visayas.
“DPWH Regions 9, 10, 12, and 13 are conducting further site validations of identified locations for the construction of additional quarantine facilities,” Sadain said.