BANGED, Abra March 31 – The Cordillera office of the health department reported the second confirmed Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) case in the region who was able to recover from the deadly virus.
Abra-based health officer Dr. Alex Bayubay disclosed that the region’s first confirmed COVID case, a 39-year old seaman from Manabo, Abra, who arrived from the United Arab Emirates last March 8, 2020, was discharged from the Ilocos Training and Regional Medical Center (ITRMC) based in San Fernando City, La Union Tuesday morning following his negative COVID test result.
He said that the first COVID-19 case in the region was able to contaminate his second cousin who is a 46-year old male from Sallapadan, Abra who is now considered as the second COVID case in the province but is now in stable condition.
The DOH-assigned health officer disclosed that one of the major problems being countered by the Abra Provincial Hospital is the alleged refusal of its health workers, including job order employees, to report to work to attend to persons under investigation (PUIs) and confirmed COVID-19 cases because of alleged discrimination from the people, especially in the places where they reside.
According to him, PUIs and confirmed COVID-19 cases are instead being referred to the ITRMC in San Fernando City, La Union or at the Baguio General Hospital and Medical Center (BGHMC) in Baguio City because of the difficulty of convincing the government hospitals to accept the patients under their care.
Earlier, the DOH reported that the first case in the region who was able to recover from the deadly virus was a 55-year old male from Metro Manila and a member of the House of Representatives who travelled from Makati City to Baguio City and had onset of the symptoms of the illness last March 12, 2020.
However, the said individual requested that he will be transported to Metro Manila where he was confined in a Level 3 hospital until he tested negative for the virus recently.
Based on the latest data from the DOH-CAR, the number of PUIs increased to 692 where 85 are still confined in hospitals, 2020 are undergoing home quarantine and 330 were discharged from the different health facilities where they were confined or from home quarantine.
Further, the Cordillera has already 17 confirmed COVID-19 cases, including those that have been reported to have recovered, where Baguio City accounted for the most cases with 13 and 1 recovery while Abra had 2 cases with 1 recovery and Benguet had 2 cases.
Health authorities predict a significant increase in the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases with the designation of the BGHMC as an independent COVID-19 testing center in Northern Luzon after all the backlogs shall have been tested where the remaining test results will be released in real time for patients to be fully aware of their status.
Baguio city has the only remaining presumptive COVID-19 death who is a 55-year old female who is working in a national government agency and had history of travel from Quezon City and Metro Manila to Baguio City and had onset of the symptoms of the virus on March 10, 2020 but unfortunately died on March 18, 2020.
By Hent
