The Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health has asked district-level authorities to make plans for the reopening of makeshift COVID-19 hospitals in order to prepare for a possible surge in the number of infections.

Earlier this week, the Pasteur Institute in Ho Chi Minh City detected the BA.4 and BA.5 sublineage of the Omicron variant in two patient samples randomly collected in Thu Duc City and Cu Chi District, the health department said on Thursday.

The number of new patients has been rising steadily over the past three weeks, with daily jumps reaching more than 50 cases.

However, there were no clear signs of an increase in hospitalizations.

The city’s health sector has prepared for possible scenarios and is ready to provide treatment for COVID-19 patients in the coming time.

The medical stations in wards, communes, and towns will be in charge of monitoring self-quarantined patients with the help of digital tools.

Focus should be directed on the management and care of people at higher risk.

Aside from their regular functions, all hospitals in the southern metropolis are currently providing treatment for COVID-19 patients with acute or chronic diseases or underlying conditions.

The facilities with the highest-level of COVID-19 treatment capacity include the Ho Chi Minh City Hospital for Tropical Diseases, Children's Hospital 1, Children's Hospital 2, Ho Chi Minh City Children's Hospital, Cho Ray Hospital, Thong Nhat Hospital, and Military Hospital 175.

A 1,000-bed COVID-19 treatment hospital is also ready to be reactivated when necessary.

In addition, all districts in the city must be ready to reopen makeshift hospitals in case the number of patients soars again, the health department stressed.

Prevention measures, including face mask donning, hand sanitizing, and vaccinations also play a very important role.

The municipal health sector needs to further raise vaccination rates in terms of the first and second booster shots.

As of Wednesday, health workers in the city of nine million people had administered more than 21.6 million vaccine doses, according to the city’s COVID-19 portal.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!