MANILA – The number of health workers recovering from the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) continues to rise as 31 persons were reported to have recovered, the Department of Health (DOH) said on Thursday.
In a Covid-19 virtual presser, DOH Promotion and Communication Service director Beverly Ho said the recoveries have reached 1,049 as the total Covid-19 cases among health workers remain at 2,330.
"Of the total number, 1,250 are active cases. We're happy to report that we have not recorded any death due to Covid-19 among our healthcare workers yesterday," Ho said in a mix of English and Filipino.
Ho added there had been no deaths among health workers in the past 10 days.
"We also want to clarify the change in the number of deaths among health workers. The other day, we reported 35 deaths but yesterday it's 33 because we learned that two of them are no longer in active duty and today it's 31 because the two other deaths are non-healthcare workers," she said.
As of May 20, the DOH reported that the total number of nurses infected with Covid-19 stood at 850, with 670 doctors or physicians, 144 nursing assistants, 86 medical technologists, 42 radiologic technologists, and 291 non-medical staff members.
Ho noted that the number of health workers infected with Covid-19 started to drop on April 11.
For the emergency hiring of health workers, the DOH has received a total of 184 facility requests as of May 20.
"We already have 6,546 slots approved for hiring in 172 hospitals and quarantine facilities, Philippine Arena Covid-19 facility, and QI (Quezon Institute) temporary quarantine facility. We have 2,536 personnel hired in hospitals and quarantine facilities," DOH Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said.
She added there were 1,129 redeployed nurses under the DOH Nurses Deployment Program, 178 in Luzon, and 951 in the Visayas and Mindanao.
For the safety of the healthcare workers, the DOH has distributed personal protective equipment to different health facilities nationwide. These include 783,645 coveralls; 4,570,700 face masks; 1,526,270 gloves; 748,414 gowns; 552,200 Kn95 masks; 479,100 N95 masks; 204,876 face shields; 870,805 headcaps; 2,672 thermal scanners; 659,528 goggles; 30 non-invasive ventilators; and 10 sanitation tents. (PNA)
