“Treat yourself and everyone around you as Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) positive so you will be vigilant (in adhering to health and safety protocols at any given time).”
City health officials under City Health Officer Dr. Rowena Galpo stressed this as they appealed anew to residents not to let their guards down in the observing preventive measures against the virus.
Mayor Benjamin Magalong himself advised as much: “Treat yourself like you have it. Treat others like they have it and make it a habit.”
City Epidemiology and Surveillance Unit Head Dr. Donnabel Panes said the risk of contracting the virus depends on how a person wears his protective gear.
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She said the proper way of wearing facial masks is crucial as the virus can strike at any moment one leaves his nose or mouth unguarded.
“You can acquire it with one intake of breath and a person’s respiratory rate is 20 per minute. Imagine if you breathe in and out 20 times in a minute, our risk is high so if you don’t wear your PPEs properly, then there is a big possibility of contracting it,” Panes said.
“So if you contract it, you cannot blame other people for infecting you because you are the one wearing your mask. You put down your mask or you kept it lower than your nostrils and you got infected then you cannot blame that other person. It’s you who are wearing your mask. We cannot wear your mask for you,” she added.
Panes said observing the minimum health standards like hand washing, cough and sneeze protocol and social distancing are just as important because studies showed that these measures when properly observed can reduce the risk of transmission by 80 percent.
“So for our minimum health standards, please wear masks properly at all times, keep distance, avoid crowds, wash hands, observe cough and sneeze etiquettes, keep travels to essentials and void the 3 Cs: Crowded conditions; Close spaces; and Conversations in short distances.”
By: Aileen P. Refuerzo
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