A new dialysis center will open in Cebu City starting August 14, 2020. | Photo Courtesy of Cebu CIty PIO
CEBU CITY, Philippines — Patients, who wish to avail of the hemodialysis center in Cebu City, will no longer have to wait long.
There are two new dialysis centers in Cebu City that will begin to operate soon, one at the Cebu City Quarantine Center (CCQC) at the North Reclamation Area (NRA) and another at SM Seaside at the South Road Properties (SRP).
The Memorandum of Agreement has been officially signed between the Cebu City government, the Department of Health, and SM Prime Holdings for the dialysis center on August 13, 2020.
The dialysis center at CCQC will only be accessible to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients, but the dialysis center at SRP will be available for non-COVID-19 patients.
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Dr. Gerardo Aquino, Jr., the hospital administrator of the Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center (VSMMC), said that patients in need of dialysis could enroll at the VSMMC to avail of these hemodialysis sessions.
The VSMMC already has a list of dialysis patients, who will be prioritized for the sessions. The hospital will be operating the dialysis center at SM Seaside.
“The old patients will have access already. We will be using the list. But for the new patients, they can access that center by registering at the VSMMC,” said Aquino.
Aquino said that since there would be two dialysis centers in Cebu City, one requirement for a session would be a swab test for COVID-19.
Positive patients will be referred to CCQC while negative patients will be referred to the center at SM Seaside.
Congresswoman Janette Garin of Iloilo, who used to be Secretary of Health and one of the individuals who pushed for the new dialysis center in Cebu City, said that the distinction of the two centers was to protect the patients undergoing dialysis from the COVID-19.
Hemodialysis patients are considered patients with comorbidities and should undergo sessions at a safer place.
Garin said that the mall would provide a better ambiance during their sessions.
“It will allow them to open their minds to a non-hospital setting,” she said.
There is no exact date when the dialysis centers will accept patients to undergo sessions, but Cebu City Mayor Edgardo Labella said the center was ready to be used anytime soon. /dbs