Doctors assure heart disease patients: It’s safe to consult

Doctors on Wednesday urged patients with heart conditions not to put off hospital visits amid the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, saying that there are safeguards in place to protect them.

Dr. Eric Sison, a cardiologist at the Philippine General Hospital, stressed that the institution follows health protocols that minimize the risk of acquiring the virus.

“May mga taong natatakot na pumunta sa ospital kasi baka magka-COVID. Let me assure you na may mga protocol,” Sison said at the Philippine Heart Association's Usapang Puso sa Puso forum.

(There are some people scared of visiting hospitals because of COVID. Let me assure you that there are protocols in place.)

Sison said all visitors are screened while suspected COVID-19 patients and non-COVID patients are placed in a separate area.

“‘Yung mga pasyente na talagang heart attack at emergency, kailangan magawa ‘yung procedure, we just do the swab. We don’t wait for the result. We put on ‘yung level 4 PPE to protect the staff,” he said.

(There are patients with heart attacks or emergency and we need to do the procedure, then we just do the swab. We don’t wait for the result. We put on the level 4 PPEs to protect the staff.)

“Separate ang mga dadaanan niya, separate ang elevator. Isolated lahat ng area. Hindi namin sinasama sa ibang pasyente para naman sigurado din tayo na habang ginagamot natin sila hindi din sila makakhawa o mahahawa sa COVID,” he said.

(The will have separate hallways, separate elevators. All areas are isolated. They will not be included with other patients so we can ensure that they will not get or transmit the illness.)

Meanwhile, at the Cagayan de Oro Polymedic Plaza Cathlab, cardiologist Dr. John Ramos said their angiogram and angioplasty procedures decreased in 2020, at the height of the coronavirus pandemic in the country.

“Hindi ito lahat ng kaso, but we can really see in 2020, around the time na nag start ‘yung pandemic natin, April, May, biglang bagsak talaga ‘yung kaso,” Ramos said.

(These are not all the cases, but we can really see in 2020, around the time of the pandemic in April and May, our cases suddenly dropped.)

“In 2021, ito ‘yung ECQ naman recently… bumababa din ng bahagya but hindi naman siya naging zero because the hospitals are adapting already to the pandemic,” he added.

(This recent ECQ in 2021, our cases slightly decreased but it did not go down to zero because hospitals are adapting already to the pandemic.)

Ramos said they are now better prepared to handle heart attack cases.

“At this time, we are better prepared to attend to this cases… nung nag lift ‘yung restrictions biglang tumaas talaga, dumoble ‘yung mga kaso na nakikita namin kasi patients are now coming in,” he said.

(At this time, we are better prepared to attend to these cases… when restrictions were lifted, our operations suddenly increased, it doubled because of patients coming in.)

He also urged patients with heart conditions to get vaccinated against COVID-19.

“There’s always this fear and if it helps you na somehow ma-allay ‘yung fear mo, you can at any time consult your doctor. I have a lot of patients na before sila mag decide magpabakuna pupunta muna sa clinic ‘yan [who before they decide to get vaccinate come to the clinic],” he said. — BM, GMA News