Patients treated outside hospitals after magnitude-7.8 earthquake in Mindanao

Patients were being treated outside several hospitals after a magnitude-7.8 quake damaged medical facilities and sparked structural safety concerns, the Department of Health (DOH) said Tuesday.

Interviewed on Super Radyo dzBB, Health Secretary Teodoro Herbosa said he personally visited the Dr. Jorge P. Royeca City Hospital and Sarangani Provincial Hospital following the strong earthquake.

"Nasa pasilyo pa ang ating mga pasyente at nasa labas. Dahil hindi pa na-declare na safe ibalik sa building," Herbosa said.

(Our patients are still in the hallway and outside. Because it has not yet been declared safe to return to the buildings.)

The earthquake led to evacuations and temporary shutdowns of some hospital services.

Patients in both hospitals were moved to tents outside their buildings after structural engineers advised against immediate re-entry.

More than 100 patients in Sarangani, including some in intensive care units, were placed in temporary outdoor shelters while authorities assessed structural safety.

Some critically ill patients, including those on ventilators and infants in incubators, remained under close monitoring in makeshift facilities.

Herbosa said structural inspections are ongoing, with engineers from the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) checking for possible damage.

"Hindi ako structural engineer, ang tingin ko hindi naman permanent. Puwede siguro makabalik doon. So yun yung pinapa-confirm lang namin sa DPWH," he said.

(I'm not a structural engineer, I don't think it's permanent. Maybe they can go back there. So that's what we're just asking the DPWH to confirm.)

In General Santos City, at least one public hospital and some eight other health facilities were affected, but the damage was not severe.

However, unstable power supply and recurring brownouts forced hospitals to rely on generators, which limited the use of high-powered medical equipment such as CT scans and X-rays, the DOH chief said.

Due to these limitations, hospitals temporarily suspended non-emergency services and prioritized critical cases, while patients stable enough were sent home to recover.

Herbosa said no major medical equipment was reported damaged but pointed out that generator power was insufficient for continuous hospital operations.

"Hindi mapaandar ang ibang equipment kung generator power lang. So yun ang mga limitation namin," he said.

(Other equipment cannot be operated with generator power alone. So those are our limitations.)

To augment local response efforts, the DOH has deployed additional medical personnel from Davao and Cotabato, while two truckloads of medicines and supplies from Davao and Zamboanga were sent to affected areas.

Herbosa added that psychosocial teams will also be deployed to assist patients and families experiencing trauma following the earthquake, especially injured children. — VDV, GMA News