East Avenue hospital denies halt in reporting COVID-19 deaths

April 12, 2020

The state-run East Avenue Medical Center on Saturday denied receiving any directive or order from the Department of Health (DOH) to stop reporting the coronavirus disease (COVID-19)-related deaths.

“The East Avenue Medical Center, a National Department of Health Level 3 Medical Center, has received no directive, order nor statement from the Department of Health or the Quezon City Local Government to stop or hold the census and reporting of deaths related to COVID-19,” Dr. Alfonso Nunez, OIC, Medical Center Chief II, said in a statement.

Nunez said deaths related to COVID-19 in East Avenue Medical Center are stringently recorded and regularly reported to the DOH- Regional Epidemiology and Surveillance Unit, in accordance with laws on civil registration and mandatory reporting of notifiable diseases.

EAMC made the statement after a post circulated online that DOH ordered Metro Manila hospitals to stop counting COVID-19 deaths.

In the same post, it said piles of cadaver were at the back of the hospital, and some were still inside, since the establishment ran out of body bags.

Nunez said the EAMC is strictly enforcing the provisions set by the Sanitation Code of the Philippines, the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-MEID), Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG), DOH and Local Government Ordinances for the respectful management of human remains.

“EAMC diligently coordinates with the relatives of the deceased, and their respective Local Government Units to promptly facilitate the processing and transportation of the corporeal remnants,” he said.

“In the meantime, a refrigerator van for temporary storage of cadavers is currently in place to contain any risk this may pose to the patients, health workers and the EAMC community,” he added.

Some of the original posts claiming about this issue are now deleted.

In a separate statement, the DOH also belied the report, saying it already talked to the person who posted the issue on his social media account.

“We would like to clarify that DOH has never issued any order to stop the census or reporting of deaths, or any case related to COVID-19 to any health facility. All hospitals and health centers are mandated to report on consultation and/or admissions and the status thereof, that fit the COVID-19 case definitions,” it said.

DOH said it is now investigating the person's allegations as it urged the public to exercise discretion when sharing information.

The Health department said as of Saturday afternoon there were 4,428 COVID-19 cases with 247 deaths and 157 recoveries. Ella Dionisio/DMS