Deputy Governor: If COVID-19 Patients Outside DKI Are Not Treated In Jakarta, 55 Percent Of New Beds Are Used

Deputy Governor of DKI Jakarta Ahmad Riza Patria (Photo: Diah Ayu Wardani / VOI)

JAKARTA - Deputy Governor of DKI Jakarta Ahmad Riza Patria said that currently the use of special COVID-19 treatment beds has exceeded the worry limit, reaching 86 percent.

However, the high use of beds is because there are 30 percent of positive patients from outside Jakarta who undergo isolation or are treated in the ICU belonging to DKI.

"In fact, until today no less than 24 to 30 percent of us are serving residents outside Jakarta. If (non-DKI patients) are reduced, maybe the range is only 60 percent or 55 percent," said Riza at the City Hall of DKI, Central Jakarta, Tuesday, January 26.

However, Riza admitted that the DKI Jakarta Provincial Government continues to serve patients who are not from Jakarta. This is because he understands that there are patients from the buffer zone who have easier access if they undergo treatment in the capital city.

"So far, we provide services that do not differentiate. We serve all Indonesian citizens well, whether they are Jakarta or non-Jakarta, so our occupancy has increased to 84 to 86 percent," he said.

Seeing this, Riza admitted that his party is currently working to improve health facilities to deal with COVID-19 patients, including the availability of health workers who treat them.

"We are trying to increase the referral hospital to 40, even 50 percent more. Hospitals that are not yet a referral hospital, we ask, have started the process of becoming a referral hospital," said Riza.

Then, currently DKI is also asking the Ministry of Tourism to be able to add hotel facilities as a place for independent isolation of COVID-19 patients for free.