Crisis Of COVID-19 ICU-Isolation Beds, Minister Of Health Orders All Regions To Increase Occupancy

Minister of Health Budi Gunadi Sadikin (Photo via ANTARA)

JAKARTA - Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin issued a circular to all regions to increase the occupancy of isolation beds and ICUs for COVID-19 patients.

This was stated by the Director General of Health Services at the Ministry of Health (Kemenkes) Abdul Kadir. Abdul said the request for the availability of beds was made because there was an increase in cases of up to 25 percent from before the year-end holiday.

"The Minister of Health has issued a circular. To anticipate a high increase in the number of patients, the hospital must also have more beds," said Kadir in the KemkominfoTV Youtube live broadcast, Wednesday, January 27.

Abdul admitted that currently the use of COVID-19 care beds on a national scale is still 63.66 percent. However, the availability is not evenly distributed in all regions.

To anticipate the fullness of COVID-19 treatment beds, through this circular, the Ministry of Health asked areas with red zones or those at high risk to increase the number of isolation beds by at least 40 percent and ICUs at least 20 percent.

Then, for areas in the yellow zone, the city is advised to convert beds as much as 30 percent and isolation rooms as much as 20 percent of the existing capacity.

"For the green zone, this is actually a precaution if there is a possibility of a surge or their position changes to the yellow zone, they are expected to convert 25 percent isolation beds and 15 percent ICUs," he explained.