DAVAO CITY – The utilization level of beds in coronavirus disease (COVID-19) wards in Davao Region has nearly reached the “danger zone,” according to the Department of Health (DOH)-Davao.
Dr. Cleo Fe Tabada, head of the Regional Epidemiology and Surveillance Unit of DOH-Davao, said that while the utilization of COVID-19 ward beds was still in the “warning zone”, this was already at 60.49 percent as of June 20, which was already very close to the “danger zone”.
Utilization level enters the “danger zone” when it goes beyond 71 percent. The bed capacity is considered in the “safe zone” when the occupancy rate is from one-percent to 30-percent, and warning zone from 31-percent to 71-percent.
According to Tabada, the occupancy rate for other COVID-19 beds have remained in the “warning level” – isolation beds with 39.47-percent, intensive care unit beds with 41.86-percent, severe cases with 43.54-percent, and severe to critical with 43.38-percent.
She said at least 9.80-percent of the mechanical ventilators have been used already.
Tabada added that the increase in the utilization level showed that more COVID-19 cases were being handled by local health authorities at the designated facilities.
Tabada believed that the Southern Philippines Medical Center (SPMC) in Davao City and Davao Regional Medical Center in Tagum City could still expand its number of beds.
SPMC officer-in-charge Ricardo Audan assured that the government hospital could still manage the surge in COVID-19 cases.
The total number of returning residents, who have tested positive for coronavirus disease (COVID-19) from May 16 until August 19, has already totaled 639, comprising 34.93-percent of the total cases in Davao Region, she added.
Tabada said that, of this total, 193 were returning overseas Filipinos (ROFs), and 446 were locally stranded individuals (LSIs).
The Davao Region has recorded a total of 32,957 LSIs and ROFs.
Based on her report, the region started seeing a spike in the number of COVID-19 positive returning residents in July with 381, and 171 for the first 19 days of August from 16 in May and 71 in June.