フィリピン医師会（Philippine College of Physicians）は、コロナウイルス患者数が多いために過重労働となり、体調不良を訴えている医師の存在を訴えました。

PCP会長は、医師たちがコロナウイルス 以外の症例にも対応していることを強調しています。また、医師がコロナウイルスに感染し、医師の人員不足につながっていることも明らかにしました。

感染症が急増に伴い、医師たちは病院で長時間勤務しているといいます。さらに、新しい患者を受け入れられないことに対する精神的な負担もあるようです。

PCP会長は、昨年医療関係者が求めたものと同じようなタイムアウトの提案を検討し、大統領が医師らの状況を考慮することを求めています。もし政府がタイムアウトを提供できないのであれば、人々の生活をより厳しく制限することを求めています。少なくとも、MECQの状態を望んでいるようです。

ワクチンの接種も進み、企業などが規制の緩和を求める一方、医療現場は未だに逼迫しています。患者を受け入れられないことに対する精神的ダメージもケアが必要でしょう。落とし所を見つけるのが困難な状況です。今後の政府の対応に注目です。

Doctors fall ill due to COVID overwork

MANILA—Some doctors in private hospitals have called in sick as they are overworked from high number of COVID-19 patients, the Philippine College of Physicians said Tuesday.

“Talagang napapagod na po ‘yung mga doktor natin… Napakadami ng kaso na nakikita namin. Punong-puno po ‘yung ER, puno rin po ‘yung ICU, puno din lahat ng wards,” PCP president Dr. Maricar Limpin told Teleradyo.

(Our doctors really tired… We are seeing so many cases. Our ER, ICU and all of the wards are full.)

She stressed doctors were also catering to non-COVID-19 cases.

Limpin disclosed some doctors had contracted the coronavirus, which led to staffing shortage.

“Marami sa mga doktor ay talagang nalagay sa quarantine at marami ho ay nagkasakit ng COVID-19,” she said.

(Many doctors had to undergo quarantine and many caught COVID-19.)

She said doctors were serving long hours at the hospitals due to soaring infections. This is aside from experiencing emotional burden for not being able to accept new patients, she added.

Limpin said they were weighing a proposal for another timeout, similar to what the medical community asked for last year.

“Hindi pa ba tayo magta-timeout? So, I hope sana ang ating Pangulo i-consider ang sitwasyon po naming mga health-care worker na talagang medyo sukdulan na ang aming nakikita,” she said.

(Are we not going to have a timeout? So, I hope the President will consider our situation because it’s already extreme.)

If the government cannot provide a timeout, Limpin called for a stricter curb on movement.

“At the very least, i-maintain ang MECQ pero ‘yung medyo tunay na MECQ sana (maintain the MECQ but I hope a real MECQ),” she said.

The entire National Capital Region, except for the city of Manila, is under the highest alert level for coronavirus due to increase in new COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations.

According to the Department of Health, Alert Level 4 is raised if more than 70 percent of hospital bed capacity is occupied and the area is under moderate to critical risk for COVID-19.

From Aug. 30 to Sept. 5, Metro Manila has an average daily reported case of 4,974.

Starting Sept. 8, Metro Manila will go down to general community quarantine, the country’s second-loosest lockdown level, until the end of the month.