Osaka asks gov’t to send SDF nurses amid serious virus cases
Defense Minister Nobuo Kishi told Yoshimura that his ministry is ready to send several nurses to a temporary medical facility for COVID-19 patients to be launched in Osaka next week, the governor told reporters.
In Tokyo, Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said in a meeting of government and ruling bloc officials that it is «arranging to dispatch (SDF medical staff) as soon as possible upon requests from local governments,» as an official in Hokkaido also said the local government is considering seeking SDF assistance.
Osaka has seen more than 300 daily coronavirus infections for six consecutive days through Sunday, with a record 141 serious patients confirmed as of that day.
The Osaka government has raised its original virus alert level from «yellow» to «red» meaning the prefecture is facing an emergency situation, the first since the system was implemented in May, and asked residents to refrain from nonessential outings until Dec. 15.
On Monday, Yoshimura inspected the new medical center designed to accommodate patients showing serious coronavirus symptoms and ease strains on the prefecture's hospitals.
It will open next Tuesday within the premises of the prefectural government-sponsored Osaka General Medical Center in the city's Sumiyoshi Ward with 30 beds equipped with ventilators. It plans to add 30 more beds in the future.
Unable to secure some 130 nurses to provide care for 30 patients at the new facility, the Osaka government has called on the central and other local governments to send some of their healthcare workers to help.
The new facility has secured 20 doctors necessary to start its operation, but still needs about 50 more nurses.
As for Hokkaido, the city of Asahikawa has recently seen a series of cluster infections, including those at some main hospitals in the city. The city, which has seen 40 deaths of COVID-19 patients so far, has around 60 percent of its hospital beds for coronavirus patients occupied.