Imelda town Mayor appeals for construction of hospital

 By: Emmanuel D. Taghoy

 

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Sept. 7 (PIA) – The surge in COVID-19 cases can overwhelm hospitals, particularly those that are accepting patients from several municipalities.

 

The same thing goes for Imelda town which is classified as fourth-class municipality with only a level 1 hospital to cater to its patients.

 

"We hope we can be given a tertiary hospital by the national government because all the municipalities are clamoring for it; Zamboanga del Sur's hospitals are also full, as well as in the Zamboanga City General Hospital," appeals Mayor Roselyn Silva of Imelda town, Zamboanga Sibugay.

 

In an interview over Laging Handa Network Briefing, Mayor Silva said they have around 200 positive COVID-19 cases in total since the beginning of the pandemic and fortunately, they only recorded 8 active cases at present. 

 

"What we do is pick up all the first contacts of an individual who tested positive from their houses and isolate them to prevent community transmission," she said.

 

The local government unit of Imelda has been giving free RT-PCR tests for first contacts of those who tested positive for COVID-19.

 

"We invested in RT-PCR tests because it's affordable when you buy directly from the supplier," shared Mayor Silva.

 

DILG has provided 10 contact tracers in Imelda town to assist in locating possible COVID-19 patients. (RVC/EDT/PIA9-Zamboanga del Norte)