A “pandemic fatigue” has been driving the recent spike in COVID-19 cases in the country, an expert said Wednesday.
“Ang main driver talaga nito sa ngayon [ay] ‘yung tinawag na ‘pandemic fatigue’ dahil medyo nagre-relax talaga ‘yung mga tao dahil nakikita nila, ‘Ay well, everyone’s out naman. Okay naman pala,’” Salvana said in an interview on Unang Balita.
“‘Yung virus hindi naman nagre-relax ‘yun eh, kaya tuloy-tuloy po ‘yung nangyayaring transmission,” he added.
According to PublicHealth, pandemic fatigue “can be experienced differently for everyone but often presents itself as feeling restless, irritable, lacking motivation, and difficulty concentrating on tasks. You may even notice yourself withdrawing from socializing with others or physical symptoms such as changes in eating and sleep habits.”
“Pandemic fatigue may be experienced more by youth and young adults whose social circles are not as clearly defined yet and socializing to build friendship networks and romantic relationships are an important focus in this stage of their life,” it added.
‘Pandemic fatigue’ driving new COVID-19 surge – expert
Salvana also emphasized that the new coronavirus variants that were recently detected in the Philippines contributed to the COVID-19 surge.
“‘Yung sa variant, sure, it certainly can be a factor. Pero ‘yung porsyento ng variants na nakikita natin sa mga tine-test natin na genomic sequencing is still low, mga 5%,” he said.
President Rodrigo Duterte is also convinced that the reason for the rise of the COVID-19 case is because many Filipinos ignore the minimum health standards.
Because of this, Duterte advised the public not to forget to follow health and safety protocols.
“Alam mo, maraming namatay, marami rin ang may sakit. Ang pinakamataas ngayon Metro… ang Manila, Manila mismo. Ngayon, ano’ng dahilan nito? Well, ‘yong hindi maniwala sa social distancing, hindi naman naniniwala sa personal hygiene,” Duterte said in a public address Monday night.
“We have these variants. Malakas ito.. Sana, sana kung makatulong kayo sa bayan, sumunod na lang kayo at medyo mapababa natin ang kaso ng COVID-19,” he added.