The hospital has a capacity of 50 patients with a maximum of 10 slots allotted for special treatment at any given time. It will serve the people of Biak Island and its surrounding areas, such as Japen Island.

The hospital cost Rp 43 billion (US$2.9 million) of the National Disaster Mitigation Agency budget. Its construction, however, was built in cooperation with the Public Works and Housing Ministry and state-owned builder PT Adhi Karya as the contractor.

Doni said the government decided to construct the hospital because Biak Numfor was in need of a proper hospital.

“Hopefully this hospital can be maintained well and also serve the people well. On dealing with COVID-19, I hope people in Biak Numfor can be disciplined in maintaining health protocols, always wearing masks, keeping their distance, avoiding crowds and washing their hands with soap under flowing water,” he said.

Biak Regent Herry Ario Naap expressed his gratitude for the hospital, which he said was sorely needed by Biak Numfor residents.

“On behalf of the Biak Numfor people, I want to say thank you to President Joko Widodo who has built this regional hospital to treat COVID-19 patients. Previously, infected residents had to be transported to Jayapura to receive treatment,” Herry said.

Read also: Hospitals more cautious, adjust services as Indonesia forges COVID-19 'new normal'

Biak Numfor Regional Hospital has treated 24 COVID-19 patients as of Thursday.

At the beginning of the pandemic, the government spent less than a month building a specialist hospital on Galang Island, Riau Islands, to treat COVID-19 patients from across the nation.

It has 340 beds for patients under observation and a 20-bed isolation ward for providing intensive care. It also has a cemetery.

Up until September, the health institution, called the Galang Special COVID-19 Infection Hospital, had treated hundreds of patients. 

In Lamongan regency, East Java, the government inaugurated a COVID-19 hospital with isolation and quarantine facilities on June 18.

In Bangka Belitung Islands, a COVID-19 hospital is under construction.

A one-story building comprising service rooms and patient rooms, the hospital will feature a total of 100 beds, 75 of which will accommodate mild cases while 25 will be designated for intensive care.

Indonesia recorded on Thursday a daily record of 4,850 new confirmed COVID-19 cases, bringing the total number of infections to 320,564 nationwide. (iwa)

 

Editor’s note: This article is part of a public campaign by the COVID-19 task force (Satgas COVID-19) to raise awareness about the pandemic.