A 136-bed capacity quarantine facility built and funded by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), the biggest in Metro Manila, was inaugurated in Marikina City on Friday (Oct 30) boosting the city’s isolation capacity of people infected with coronavirus disease (COVID-19).
DPWH Secretary Mark Villar and Marikina Mayor Marcelino Teodoro led the inauguration of the newly-completed quarantine facility for COVID-19 patients located on Kabayani Road in Barangay Nangka.
A total of 37 containers vans were converted into isolation rooms equipped with air-conditioning system, beds, and comfort rooms on each room. The facility also has rooms for healthcare workers and medical equipment, as well as medical doctors and nurse stations.
"Ito na po ang pinakamalaking quarantine facility sa Metro Manila (This is the biggest quarantine facility in Metro Manila). With this facility, we will further lessen the number of cases of COVID-19,” Villar said in a statement.
Villar noted that such a project would not be possible without the support of the Marikina City government, which provided the land where the quarantine facility was constructed.
Since the start of the pandemic, Teodoro stressed the importance of building a robust and resilient health delivery system in Marikina to swiftly respond to health emergencies such as COVID-19.
“This time, the quarantine and treatment facilities we have here, under the program of our President Rodrigo Duterte — Bayanihan Heal as One — will truly benefit everyone,” Teodoro said.
“Our fight against COVID-19 continues. It is true that little by little, with the cooperation of all, as we have a whole-of-government and a whole-of-community approach, we see the flattening of COVID-19 curve in Metro Manila,” he added.
The mayor assured that the quarantine facility is compliant with health and safety standards to avoid the transmission of the virus in the community.
Marikina City is the first local government unit in the National Capital Region (NCR) to build its own molecular diagnostics laboratory capable of conducting reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) tests.
RT-PCR test (swab) is considered the “gold standard” for COVID-19 testing due to its high accuracy in detecting SARS-COV-2, the pathogen that causes COVID-19.
Other officials present during the launching were DPWH-NCR Regional Director Ador Canlas, and District Engr. Medel Chua of Metro Manila 1st District Engineering Office.