Monday, 03 August 2020 12:19

Moreno: CdeO able, willing to help MisOr on COVID-19 cases

Written by Stephen Capillas

Cagayan de Oro City Mayor Oscar Moreno again extended anew his offer for City Hall to house COVID-19 patients from the towns in Misamis Oriental in the city’s temporary treatment management facility (TTMF) after learning of reports about the temporary two-week closure of a provincial hospital in one of its towns.

“As much as I wanted to avoid commenting on it because I would again be accused of politicking, it both pains and bothers me to learn about what happened to the Misamis Oriental Provincial Hospital in Balingasag town,’ Mayor Moreno said during Saturday noon’s (Aug. 1) press briefing.

The Misamis Oriental Provincial Hospital in Balingasag closed for two weeks starting July 31 after three of their administrative personnel tested positive of COVID-19. Misamis Oriental already recorded over 60 COVID-19 positive cases of whom half are locally stranded individuals (LSIs) and returning overseas Filipinos (ROFs).

“If they wanted, they could ask us to fetch these personnel at Balingasag and we can house them at the city’s TTMF. I asked (Paul Douglas) Rocky Calingin (head of City Hall’s Operation Tabang LSI/ROF) to extend City Hall’s offer of assistance to the mayors in Misamis Oriental and coordinate with them in their cases,” Mayor Moreno said.

City Health Officer Dr. Lorraine Nery said the city’s TTMF also houses authorized persons outside residence (APOR) who aren’t city residents but have tested positive for COVID-19. “The City Health Office (CHO) and JR Borja General Hospital (JRBGH) prepared contingencies to include assisting the Northern Mindanao Medical Center (NMMC) should it be overwhelmed with COVID-19 cases,” Dr. Nery said.

In extending the city’s offer of assistance to the province’s towns, Mayor Moreno said City Hall already developed a functional, capable COVID-19 response system to handle cases in the city.

“The city is prepared to offer within its means to house COVID-19 patients from the province as much as it can,” Mayor Moreno said.

“Just like when Libertad town recorded its first COVID-19 case, I told Dr. Nery to reach out to the Provincial Health Office and to Misamis Oriental health officers to reiterate our offer of the city’s assistance to house their COVID-19 positive cases to avoid any accusations of politicking on our part,” Mayor Moreno said.