Silliman U donates 150 beds for a quarantine facility in Dumaguete

MINERVA BC NEWMAN

DUMAGUETE CITY -- Silliman University (SU) donated 150 wooden folding beds/cots to the Dumaguete City High School Quarantine Facility in Barangay Calindagan in response to the city’s bed shortage in their isolation facilities amid the continuing rise in the number of COVID-19 positive cases.

SU President Dr. Betty Cernol McCann said the beds donation is one of the efforts initiated by the university to help Dumaguete as it faces rough sailing in the “fight” against the virus.

“Silliman is always ready to help the local government in any capacity it can, as part of our social responsibility to the community,” McCann said. 

The SU COVID-19 Crisis Management Group led by Dr. Walden Ursos made the donation after the City admitted that its number one to date are beds for the isolation facilities in the barangays.

The turnover of the beds was attended by Engr. Edgar S. Ygnalaga Jr. of Buildings and Grounds superintendent and Atty. Joshua Francisco Ablong, Human Resource Development manager, representing SU; Dr. Maria Sarah Talla, Dumaguete City Health Officer and Atty. Manuel Arbon, Dumaguete City Legal Officer, representing the city government.

Meanwhile, Silliman has also designated both Davao Cottage and Channon Hall as isolation facilities with the approval of the local Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) for those who have mild cases and those with first- and second-generation exposures to persons positive with the virus. 

Dr. Ursos said that the move is to help the city decongest their isolation facilities.  Those that are quarantined at Channon Hall and Davao Cottage are the university’s faculty, staff, and students infected with COVID-19 for a very minimal fee, to cover the utilities and maintenance expenses.

Aside from Channon and Davao Cottage, Vernon Hall is also being utilized as an isolation facility for front liners from the SU Medical Center infected with the virus.  “The move eases the demand for bed spaces capacity of the hospital,” Ursos added.

Vice President for Development Prof. Jane Annette Belarmino on the other hand called for donations and/or collaboration among the alumni and friends of Silliman to help in addressing the needs of those who are in the city’s isolation facilities as Dumaguete City continues to struggle with the pandemic.

Belarmino said that any help whether big or small is welcome and that her office is ready to work with interested donors for a more coordinated and sustainable program to help the LGU in Dumaguete.

Dumaguete City Health Officer Dr. Talla in a June 10 meeting with the IATF here admitted that there are now more than 500 COVID-19 positive cases in the city.