COVID-19 cases continue to rise – DOH

The increase in new COVID-19 cases in the country is expected to continue in the coming days or weeks. The impact of the two-week enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) will not be immediately felt, according to the Department of Health yesterday.

This comes after the country recorded a one-day highest of 18,332 cases on Monday. Yesterday, it dropped to 12,067 new cases.

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Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said the impact of the 2-week lockdown could be felt over the next two to three weeks.

The current active case findings of local governments also affect the continuous discovery of new cases.

Local governments need to focus primarily on shortening the time to find new cases and isolating them to disrupt community transmission and subject everyone with symptoms and close contacts to the COVID-19 test.

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In order not to overwhelm the country’s healthcare system, the DOH has a proposal to shorten the quarantine period of healthcare workers who have been infected with COVID-19 but have been ‘fully vaccinated’ to seven days instead of 14 days. They may also be subjected to another test on the fifth day of their isolation.

COVID-19 cases continue to rise – DOH

“Maaring 7 araw basta mayroon silang 5th-day testing at sila’y negatibo. Ito’y fina-finalize pa po,” said Health spokesperson Maria Rosario Vergeire.

This is in the face of the continuing shortage of health workers in private and public hospitals as they contract COVID-19 or are exposed to people who are positive for the disease.

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Among those experiencing a shortage of health workers in the Philippine General Hospital (PGH), with 80 medical frontliners who were recorded with COVID-19 in mid-August.

“Most of our health care workers are vaccinated. Buti na lang at hindi sila malulubha kaya lang… kailangan din nila ng quarantine. ‘Yan po ay nakakapilay sa ating frontliners,” said  spokesperson Dr. Jonas Del Rosario.

According to the DOH, emergency hiring for additional health care workers in hospitals will continue.

According to the agency’s latest data, 23,131 health care workers have tested positive for COVID-19 since the pandemic began. A total of 22,597 were recovered, or more than 97.7 percent, while 103 died.

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