PGH will vaccinate 5k employees within one week —spokesperson

The Philippine General Hospital is targeting to inoculate around 5,000 of its employees, with doctors and nurses on the priority list, in just one week as part of their COVID-19 vaccination plan, its spokesperson said on Wednesday.

"Meron na po kaming sistema in place... Merong priority list, ang uunahin natin lahat frontliners na nag-aalaga sa COVID patients, mga doktor, nurses, paramedics, sila ang mga uunahin," PGH spokesperson Dr. Jonas Del Rosario said in a Super Radyo DZBB interview.

Next will be frontliners who are not involved in COVID-19 operations and are attending non-COVID patients, followed by PGH's administrative staff, including personnel and secretaries.

"Kung lahat po ng empleyado, kasama na po doktor hanggang down the line sa rank and file, mga secretary na nasa PGH, almost 5,000 po. So we are targeting na within one week ay matapos. Meron na ring schedule," Del Rosario said.

Likewise, he said the hospital is planning to allot the first two days of vaccination drive to nurses and doctors, and it will consider the work schedules of other staff.

He pointed out that the vaccination program is offered to all, but employees may still decline as vaccination required that patients give their "informed consent."

Del Rosario said that when PGH conducted its initial survey for employees, results showed that 72% are willing to get vaccinated, 25% responded with "not in the meantime," while 2% answered "definitely no."

"But we don't know kung ano talaga 'yung actual [numbers] kasi survey lang naman. Baka kung nandiyan na 'yung bakuna at alam na nila kung ano rin 'yung bakuna, baka po madagdagan or mabawasan 'yung mga magpapabakuna."

Moreover, vaccination will not be extended to PGH employees' families and relatives.

PGH is one of the country’s three main COVID-19 referral hospitals to be the first to be inoculated against the coronavirus this February as the country gears up for the start of its mass vaccination campaign. —LBG, GMA News