Uniformed medical personnel to augment health workforce — DOH

Uniformed medical personnel will be deployed to selected hospitals to augment their health workforce following the rise in COVID-19 cases, the Department of Health (DOH) said Friday.

“Nakapaghingi na ng tulong ang ating mga secretaries from PNP and uniformed personnel para makapag-augment ng resources natin for healthcare, ‘yung personnel nilang medical idedeploy sa nangangailangang mga ospital,” Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said during a Palace briefing.

([Our] secretaries have asked for help from PNP and uniformed personnel to augment our resources for healthcare. Their medical personnel will be deployed to hospitals in need.)

To further augment the health workforce, Vergeire said the government has shortened isolation and quarantine periods for fully vaccinated health workers

“Panagalawa po, that’s the very reason why we updated our policies on isolation and quarantine for our healthcare workers,” Vergeire said.

“So that we can be able to manage, itong mga healthcare workers na nagkakasakit pero fully vaccinated naman, o di kaya ay nae-expose at fully vaccinated,” she added.

(So that we can be able to manage healthcare workers who are getting sick but are fully vaccinated or who were exposed but were fully vaccinated.)

The Philippines earlier reported 21,819 new cases, the highest since September 12 last year, where the country logged 21,411 new infections. — RSJ, GMA News