OCD distributes China-made PPEs to public hospitals

MANILA, Philippines — The Office of Civil Defense (OCD) has distributed to six government hospitals China-made personal protective equipment (PPE) for health workers currently fighting the coronavirus disease 2019 or COVID-19.  

OCD administrator Ricardo Jalad said that along with the personnel of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG), his office immediately turned over 2,780 sets of medical protective gear to San Lazaro Hospital, 2,000 sets to the Philippine General Hospital, 770 sets to East Avenue Medical Center, 2,800 to Lung Center of the Philippines, 2,590 to the Dr. Jose Rodriguez Memorial Hospital and Sanitarium in Manila and 1,100 sets to the Armed Forces of the Philippines Medical Center in V. Luna Street, Quezon City.

The country’s frontliners against COVID-19 that include doctors, nurses and other health workers have been battling COVID-19 with whatever protective gear are available in the hospitals. 

There has been a shortage of PPEs in private and government hospitals nationwide prior to the COVID-19 pandemic that has already killed more than 10 doctors.

“Early morning Friday, OCD together with the Philippine Coast Guard facilitated the distribution of protective equipment supplies to several COVID-19 referral hospitals,” Jalad said.

He said the PPEs were part of the first batch of protective gear that the Department of Health (DOH) purchased from China.

“The first batch of approximately 900,000 PPE sets procured by DOH for health workers fighting the COVID-19 arrived at Villamor Air Base last Tuesday evening,” Jalad said.

The PPEs were transferred to OCD in Camp Aguinaldo, Quezon City. 

Each set has a pair of goggles, coverall, head cover, gloves, shoe cover, surgical mask and surgical grown.

Jalad said that DOH is expecting delivery of the remaining PPEs between April 6 and 24.

Pangasinan has received PPEs for local health frontliners from private companies through the office of Sen. Bong Go on April 2 at the Narciso Ramos Sports and Civic Center in Lingayen.

The donation was turned over by Go’s representative Ralph Du to Pangasinan Gov. Amado Espino III.

The PPEs include 246 isolation suits, 1,000 surgical masks and one box of surgical gloves.

The PPEs were distributed to the Pangasinan Provincial Hospital, Western Pangasinan District Hospital, Urdaneta District Hospital, Lingayen District Hospital and Mangatarem District Hospital. – With Eva Visperas