COVID-19 clusters highest in communities, BPOs, transportation – DOH

Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire reported Monday the COVID-19 clusters in the country are highest in communities, business process outsourcing (BPO) companies, and different modes of transportation.

Vergeire said 84.9% or 1,480 of the 1,742 instances of clustering of cases are found in communities.

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She added the second-highest incidence of COVID-19 clusters at  8.09% or 140 was found in other settings, including the transportation sector and nine BPO companies.

Meanwhile, 5.11% or 89 cases of clustering were reported in hospitals and health care facilities, while 1.84% or 32 clusters were logged in jails and prison facilities.

“Itong other settings, sa transportation ito, including sweeper flights saka nine BPO companies. Itong BPOs,.52% ng total clusters in the country ay sa kanila,” Vergeire said in an online forum.

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(These other settings, for transportation, include sweeper flights and nine BPO companies. This BPOs, .52% of the total clusters in the country belong to them.)

COVID-19 clusters

The DOH official, however, clarified that the findings on COVID-19 clusters do not mean that BPO workers are move vulnerable to contracting the disease.

“Kailangan ang immune system natin, malakas, para di tayo maapektuhan ng [COVID-19] virus. If you do night shift and you lack sleep, of course you become vulnerable pero para magkaroon ng impeksiyon, dapat may exposure,” Vergeire said.

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(We need our immune system healthy so that we would not be affected by the [COVID-19] virus. If you do the night shift and you lack sleep, of course, you become vulnerable but to have an infection, there must be exposure.)

“Kung may exposure ka at vulnerable ka, mas madali mo makukuha ang sakit kaya ang factor na titignan natin rito ay exposure,” she added.

(If you have exposure and you are vulnerable, you will get the disease more quickly, so the factor we will look at here is exposure.)

Meanwhile, DOH is unlikely to prohibit home quarantine for  and mild cases of COVID-19 despite the possibility that such measures could have contributed to community transmission of the virus.

Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr., the National Task Force against COVID-19 chief implementer Secretary earlier, claimed that the home quarantine caused the surge in COVID-19 cases for asymptomatic and mild patients.