Big event venues open doors as COVID-19 facilities
By Michaela Tangan
Features Writer, The Philippine STAR
As most Filipinos stay home and the once-bustling streets and buildings become desolate, several events places and entertainment spaces find a new purpose as temporary hospitals and quarantine centers.
The move aims to decongest health-care facilities — one of the country’s national action plans to curb the spread of COVID-19.
World Trade Center Metro Manila
The 10,000-square-meter indoor exhibition space in Pasay City has recently been repurposed into a 530-bed-capacity COVID-19 facility with a nursing station and panel divisions for privacy.
The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) manages the operations of the makeshift health facility.
Philippine International Convention Center
Also located in Pasay, the PICC Forum Tent is set to attend to 294 COVID-19 patients with mild to moderate symptoms.The Philippine National Police’s medical corps and health-care personnel will operate six nurse stations in the temporary health facility.
Houses are also set up outside the facility for health workers assigned in the area.
Rizal Memorial Sports Complex
In Manila, the sports complex can accommodate up to 112 confirmed COVID-19 patients. It will also serve as a recovery area for patients with mild symptoms and those from the Philippine General Hospital who are already close to recovery.
The AFP also handles the operations in the said temporary health facility.
Ciudad de Victoria
The estate includes the Philippine Arena, Philippine Sports Stadium and The Garden Suites.
Once the construction of the COVID-19 health facility is complete, it will have 1,065 rooms for patients, specifically those coming from Caloocan, Malabon, Navotas and Valenzuela (CAMANAVA) area. It will also have 476 suites, which can be shared by two to four health workers each.
ASEAN Convention Center
The convention center in Clark Freeport Zone, Pampanga has a 150-bed capacity and air-conditioned cubicles. According to Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) president and CEO Vince Dizon, they will provide necessary equipment and supplies for the health-care workers assigned in the area.
National Government Administrative Center
To help decongest hospitals, the NGAC in New Clark City, Tarlac will be accepting around 1,000 COVID-19 patients with mild
or zero symptoms.
Athlete’s Village
Also in New Clark City, the rooms used for the Southeast Asian Games have been converted into a COVID-19 quarantine facility. In February, the village already housed Filipinos who returned from the COVID-19 epicenter, Hubei, China.
Other areas that will soon be converted into temporary quarantine and health-care facilities are the outdoor spaces of Veterans Medical Complex, Quezon Institute, Amoranto Stadium in Quezon City; FTI Station in Taguig; PhilSports Arena in Pasig; Filinvest Tent in Muntinlupa; and Duty Free Philippines in Parañaque.
The private-public project is a joint endeavor of Razon Group (Prime Metro BMD Corp. and the Bloomberry Cultural Foundation, Inc.), EEI Corp., Vista Land, the Ayala Group (AC Energy, Ayala Land, Makati Development Corp.), Filinvest, Investment & Capital Corp. of the Philippines, Aboitiz, World Trade Center Metro Manila, Lina Group of Companies, Megawide, Meralco, PLDT, Smart Communications, Globe Telecom, D.M. Consunji, Inc., the Concepcion Industrial Corp., and Pacific Paint (Boysen) Philippines, Inc.
