2 military medical teams ready for NCR hospital deployment

From the Philippine News Agency (Oct 1, 2021): 2 military medical teams ready for NCR hospital deployment (By Priam Nepomuceno)

AFP Surgeon General, Col. Fatima Claire Navarro (File photo)

The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) said Friday it has readied two medical teams for deployment to hospitals dealing with an influx of coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) cases in the National Capital Region (NCR).

"We have initially prepared two teams, each composed of one military doctor and five military nurses who will be deployed to hospitals identified by the DOH (Department of Health)," AFP Surgeon General Col. Fatima Claire Navarro said in a statement.

The first deployment will be to St. Luke’s Medical Center should the memorandum of agreement (MOA) with the DOH be approved by Monday, she added.

The MOA seeks to define the deployment of military medical personnel to hospitals requesting augmentation.

"It will detail the specific number of military doctors, nurses, and nursing aides that will be deployed as needed by the hospitals, as well as the duration of their deployment to hospitals in need of support," Navarro earlier said.

The agreement will be implemented by the AFP Health Service Command and guided by the Office of the Surgeon General.

"Each team will undergo RT-PCR (reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction) tests before deployment. After they are assured of a negative result and no Covid-19 symptoms, they will go on a 14-day duty followed by a 14-day quarantine period," she said.

The duration of deployment will be one month, including the quarantine period. This is subject to extension or reallocation of DOH depending on their evaluation.

"The AFP will continuously coordinate with DOH being the authorized agency to accept requests of hospitals and allocate personnel coming from the AFP, as well as from the PNP (Philippine National Police) and BFP (Bureau of Fire Protection)," Navarro said.

She added that the deployment of medical teams in the NCR is apart from their current deployment to mega swabbing and quarantine facilities in Metro Manila, and the teams sent to augment health care workers in Davao.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1155308