BAGUIO CITY – The Cordillera Office of the Department of Health (DOH-CAR) announced the region remains free from the dreaded Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) amidst the presence of some twenty-nine persons under investigation (PUIs) or suspected carriers of the illness.
DOH-CAR regional director Dr. Amelita M. Pangilinan said that of the 29 PUIs, 28 individuals had already been given a clean bill of health by the health authorities after their laboratory tests turned out to be negative for COVID-19, while 1 person remains admitted in a city health facility awaiting the outcome of the laboratory test conducted by the Manila-based Research Institute of Tropical Medicine (RITM).
She added the areas in the region with PUIs include Baguio City with 12 followed by Abra with 7, Benguet – 5, Mountain Province – 3, and Kalinga and Apayao with 1 PUI each.
The DOH-CAR official claimed the continuous decrease in the number of PUIs in the different parts of the country is a welcome development to the Filipinos as there is no Filipino in the country who had been affected by the dreaded virus despite the emergence of individuals who possess the symptoms of COVID-19.
According to her, the decrease in the number of PUIs nationwide could be attributed to the agency’s surveillance, early travel restrictions, and enhanced laboratory processes.
However, Pangilinan pointed out the decrease in PUIs is not enough reason to let the guards down as the health department will continuously assess the situation and improve its surveillance protocols based on evidence and further developments.
Earlier, Health Secretary Francisco Duque III asserted the health department is more than ready to respond to the health needs of the Filipinos should they test positive for COVID-19 and that the agency is also geared up for the possibility of local transmission.
He stipulated that the welfare of the thousands of health workers are the agency’s top most priority, and as such, the department has adequately trained and equipped them to carefully assist cases should they arise in the country.
At present, the health department is adopting its contingency plans as the World Health Organization (WHO) raised its risk assessment on the COVID-19 to ‘very high’ at both the regional and global levels.
Based on data obtained from WHO, there are 58 countries with confirmed cases and 20 countries with local transmission.
Pangilinan urged residents in the different parts of the region to remain calm about the situation as there are no positive COVID-19 cases and there is no detected local transmission of the virus and what is important is for everyone to observe the basic precautionary measure of sick people staying at home and for them not to be in crowded places to prevent them from being the source of illness among other people.
Further, she advised people to observe the proper sneezing and coughing etiquette and for individuals who are having colds and coughing to wear masks to prevent them from being the source of the illness that will complicating the health of others they are in close contact.
By DEXTER A. SEE
Photo: Regional and city health officials discuss the recent updates on the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) in the city and the region as a whole where there are 29 persons under investigation and that 28 had already been given a clean bill of health. Rosalia T. See
