A surprise visit from a senator of the republic nudged the Department of Health (DoH), particularly the San Lazaro Hospital, to open a space to accommodate victims of the measles outbreak who had spilled outside to hallways and wards of a public hospital.

Sen. Richard Gordon went ballistic after seeing for himself the sorry plight of patients, most of them children and infants suffering from measles, inside the San Lazaro Hospital in Manila.

“If you have a sick child and you see the situation there, you will rather have your child in your home… and if your child is confined there, you’d never think of anything good because of their sorry state,” Gordon told the Daily Tribune.

He said he chose to drop by San Lazaro Hospital past Wednesday midnight after an extended Senate session on the budget.

He added he decided on a surprise visit to the hospital amid reports of a measles outbreak in Metro Manila.

Gordon said his staff tried to contact one Dr. Dodie Lopez, director of San Lazaro Hospital, before they proceeded there but to no avail.

The senator, who is also chairman of the Philippine National Red Cross (PNRC), said he was shocked to see three children occupying one bed with their parents passing the night along the corridors of the hospital. Similar situations were also witnessed inside the hospital’s wards.

Gordon noted most of the patients were children as young as three years old.

“Considering this is a highly contagious disease,” he added.

The patients came from as far as Rizal province and various cities in Metro Manila.

The senator noted four children die daily due to various diseases. He said he immediately offered to send Red Cross tents to San Lazaro to decongest the hospital and help ease the suffering of the child-patients.

He said the Red Cross, in close coordination with its international counterparts, was able to mobilize personnel to man at least five tents equipped with hospital beds, comfort rooms and manned by professionals.

“We were ready wherever they will decide to put up the tents,” he said.

However, Gordon added the offer was initially declined and Lopez offered to open a wing yesterday at the San Lazaro Hospital to transfer the overcrowding patients.

“My God, it took a senator of the republic to go there in the wee hours for them to decide to provide more space for these children,” Gordon decried.

“I did not go there for a gimmick nor to embarrass them (DoH officials). I went there because of the outbreak, I want to check and see what Red Cross can do,” he said.

The senator stressed that the Red Cross offer stands if only to ease the sufferings of the children confined at the hospital.

Gordon said the PNRC is ready to provide medical interventions, including the establishment of a 100-bed emergency medical unit and welfare desks at San Lazaro Hospital.

“We need to work together to assist the families affected by the measles outbreak,” he added.

If you have a sick child and you see the situation there, you will rather have your child in your home.

PNRC is offering to put up the emergency medical unit, an outdoor hospital setup, to serve as an extension ward to address the overflow of patients.

During the visit, Dr. Barbra May Banaobra, infectious disease fellow, said there are over 250 patients currently admitted to San Lazaro Hospital due to confirmed measles cases. Majority are children who have not received immunization shots.

Untying a knot Government-owned San Lazaro Hospital is packed with patients but a visit from Sen. Richard Gordon proves the situation has become so dire. BOB DUNGO JR. Aside from the establishment of an emergency medical unit and welfare desks, PRC is also ready to provide blankets and hygiene kits to uplift the dignity of the patients and parents currently staying at the hospital.

As DoH expands the declaration of outbreak to Central Luzon, Eastern Visayas and Central Visayas, PRC alerted its local chapters to conduct community mobilization to raise awareness on measles and its prevention measures.

PRC also urged the public to “not put vaccination into a bad light” as it is necessary to protect children from contagious diseases.

“Let’s stop the scare and rather educate the parents, families and communities on the importance of vaccination for our children’s sake. I’ve said this a long time ago, hindi masama ang bakuna na kabilang sa expanded program on immunization (Vaccines that are part of the expanded program on immunization are not harmful),” he stressed.

President Rodrigo Duterte ordered the DoH to “immediately respond” to the crisis not just in the National Capital Region (NCR) but also in other parts of the country.

The directive was given by the Chief Executive to Health Secretary Francisco Duque during the weekly Cabinet meeting last Wednesday night, according to presidential spokesman Salvador Panelo.

Mr. Duterte, shared Panelo, instructed the DoH to launch a “vigorous” measles immunization campaign to encourage parents to have their children vaccinated.

“I think one of the reasons why we have an outbreak of measles is because the lack of immunization on the part of children. I think Secretary Duque was saying some of our people are reluctant to undergo immunization by reason of the Dengvaxia scandal – they are scared in other words, that’s why they (DoH) are having a hard time right now,” Panelo said.

“So, we’re conducting a massive immunization plus information campaign that it’s better to prevent than to cure,” he added.

According to Duque, there was a 550 percent rise in measles cases from 2 January to 6 February compared to the same period last year.

The DoH has recorded so far 196 cases of measles in NCR, higher than the 20 cases recorded in the same period last year. Since January, 55 deaths from measles were recorded at the San Lazaro Hospital in Manila, most of them children aged three months to four years old.

The DoH disclosed that aside from the measles outbreak, the disease had spread to other areas in Luzon and the Visayas which tallied an increase in cases of the disease.

Duque said among regions that saw a rise in measles cases were the Ilocos region, Cagayan Valley, Calabarzon, Mimaropa, Bicol region, Central and Eastern Visayas.