The Philippine government is confident that the country will successfully defeat the Corona Virus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic amid the ongoing battle that has been running for 6 months.
According to National Task Force against COVID-19 Chief Implementer Secretary Carlito Galvez, the quality of the country’s health care system is continuously improving. Based on Thursday’s data, around 158, 610 patients have recovered from the disease. This is equivalent to 70% of the positive COVID-19 cases. The fatality rate of the country is also considered low at 1.6%
“Ipinapakita rin nito na kahit wala pang bakuna, kayang-kaya po natin na mapataas ang bilang ng ating recoveries at maibaba ang case fatality rate (It goes to show that despite the absence of a vaccine, we can increase the number of our recoveries and decrease fatality rate).”
Almost 42,000 COVID-19 tests can be conducted in the country per day. In total, more than 2 million tests have been conducted.
“Ang ating target po na tayo ay makapag-test 10 milyon Filipinos para ating ma-contain ang pagtaas ng mga bilang ng transmission (Our target is to test 10 million Filipinos to contain the increasing number of transmission) .”
Meanwhile, the government is also considering the possibility of using antigen and saliva test for faster turn-out of results compared to the RT-PCR test.
Around 10,000 Ligtas-COVID centers with more than 100,000 beds, 19 Mega Temporary Treatment and Management Facilities with 3,000 beds have been established in the country. The quarantine facility at the Nayong Pilipino in Parañaque with a 600-bed capacity and the Calamba Regional Office with a 533-bed capacity are expected to be finished soon.
The NTF also encourages Metro Manila mayors to allocate around 1,000 beds for COVID-19 patients.
Meanwhile, the government is focused on the mental health of those who tested positive for COVID-19 and their families, as well as sectors mostly affected by the health crisis.
According to Sec. Galvez, the psychological impact of the current pandemic has a great effect on returning Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs), locally stranded individuals (LSIs) and health workers.
Report from Bea Bernardo
