BACOLOD CITY - A medical team of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), which had earlier been deployed in Cebu, arrived at the Bacolod-Silay airport in Negros Occidental on Friday, August 28, to augment the medical personnel in addressing the rising number of coronavirus disease (COVID)-19 cases here.
Capt. Lizah Doroa, leader of the medical team, said the 12-member team will be divided into two groups – each having a doctor, two nurses and three aid men.
One group will be assigned at the Riverside Medical Center and the other, at the Bacolod Queen of Mercy Hospital.
The members of the team were among the medical personnel assigned in Cebu City at the height of the spike of COVID cases there.
“We’ve always been ready for the COVID-19 since March,” Doroa said.
Doroa said that people can cooperate with the authorities by always observing safety precautions and reporting cases to the local government unit.
Their deployment here was a response of the national government to the urgent appeal of Mayor Evelio Leonardia for help from President Duterte due to the dwindling number of medical personnel in Bacolod.
This manpower shortage, according to the mayor, was a compelling reason for necessary augmentation.
Leonardia thanked the President for his immediate response to the city’s call for help.
Meanwhile, the Army’s 303rd Infantry Brigade (IBde) in the province received 50 personal protective equipment (PPEs) from the AFP medical team to be distributed to military frontliners.
Col. Inocencio Pasaporte, 303rd IBde commander, said that the medical team will help boost the efforts of the local authorities here to curb the spread of COVID-19.