MANDALUYONG CITY  -- The Philippine Red Cross (PRC) continues the operation of its isolation facilities and emergency field hospitals (EFH) as the more contagious Delta Variant poses a threat.

PRC is preparing its facilities as COVID cases are expected to rise with the new variant.

PRC Chairman and CEO Sen. Richard Gordon immediately ordered the deployment of the EFH last April to serve as an extension for Lung Center of the Philippines (LCP) to handle the increasing demand for hospital beds. This helps LCP free bed spaces, allowing admission of more severe cases in need of immediate hospital care.

PRC also turned unused classrooms into temporary isolation facilities to cater to asymptomatic patients. PRC now has isolation facilities in Ateneo, UP, DLS-CSB, and Makati Science High School.

"We are in a war situation against this invisible enemy. The health care system in the NCR+ region is challenged due to the increasing cases of COVID-positive individuals. Through the emergency field hospitals and isolation facilities of the Red Cross, the PRC will help serve more patients needing immediate health care," according to Gordon.

"I am fully vaccinated and I am grateful for the protection that the vaccine affords me today. While infections in vaccinated people are relatively uncommon, they can and do happen," Gordon added.

Gordon, who recently tested positive for COVID-19, urged the public to get vaccinated to prevent severe cases from happening. (Philippine Red Cross)