The Philippine Red Cross (PRC) blamed the Department of Health’s late reporting of COVID-19 cases for the surge of COVID-19 infections in households and communities.
Last week, PRC volunteered to assist the government in releasing results to patients who would test positive for the disease. It added at least one-third of the over 15,700 patients since July 30 have not yet been informed of their results, which could have caused the spread of COVID-19 in communities.
Red Cross would start releasing the positive results to patients in its facilities after getting the approval of DOH.
“We welcome the DOH authorization, given the urgency of the situation, where more positive COVID cases are recorded in our country. They may have been dangerously increasing community transmission of the disease. We have devised a mechanism for releasing positive results to the individuals concerned without compromising the necessary protocols,” PRC Chairman Richard Gordon said in a statement yesterday.
Health Secretary Francisco Duque III, in a letter sent to PRC, confirmed its approval of the organization’s suggested measure.
“The DOH notes and poses no objection to the proposed mechanism of the PRC that the positive results shall initially be released to the DOH before individuals to trigger appropriate surveillance efforts of the national government and concerned local governments,” Duque wrote.
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Red Cross PH blames DOH for COVID-19 surge
The organization has molecular labs nationwide that could conduct 40,000 tests daily. As of August 15, PRC had done at least 22 percent of 2,083,806 cumulative samples tested nationwide since April 14.
However, the Red Cross could not immediately release the results to patients because they needed to send them to the DOG first in accordance. The protocol caused delays in the patient’s isolation.
Gordon said PRC doctors also give psychosocial support to their patients upon releasing their results.
“Once the Bayanihan to Recover As One Act or Bayanihan 2 is signed into law and implemented, we can direct them to hospitals and quarantine facilities they can go to because of a provision that establishes a National Referral System for COVID-19, which will be jointly developed by the DOH and the PRC,” he added.