[ad_1]
Filipino overseas repatriated (OFW) workers who were stranded in Manila for about a month arrive at Pier 6 in Cebu City in this file photo dated April 28, 2020. The | CDND File Photo
CEBU CITY, Philippines – Nine more repatriated Filipino overseas (OFW) workers in Central Visayas tested positive for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
This now brings to a total of 14 the number of virus-infected OFWs that arrived in Cebu on April 28, according to data from the Department of Health in Visayas Central (DOH-7).
However, DOH has yet to provide data on the specific addresses of the nine OFWs. On Friday, five others from Cebu province tested positive for COVID-19.
Read: 5 Cebuano OFW positive returnees from COVID-19
The nine were among the 220 OFWs that arrived from Manila on April 28. They all remain isolated in hotels in Cebu City as of today, May 2, 2020.
Dr. Jaime Bernadas, director of DOH -7, has recommended that all repatriated OFWs undergo further laboratory testing before they are allowed to return to their families.
“Additional laboratory tests, such as tests for the presence of antibodies, can tell us whether the latest positive results are active infections or previous exposures,” Bernadas said in a press release issued to the Cebu media on Friday night.
According to DOH-7, antibodies appear during infection (IgM) or upon recovery (IgG).
“The presence of either one will tell us if the infection is active or, in the case of IgG, it is from previous exposure and, therefore, the positive result of RT-PCR could be viral remains of a previous infection”, Bernadas said.
A total of 328 repatriated OFWs were sent to the different Visayas and Mindanao provinces on April 28 after being stranded in Metro Manila for at least a month.
Of these, 291 were sent back to their respective provinces in central Visayas. Of the number, 220 are Cebuanos, 47 boholanones, while another 24 were from the city of Dumaguete in Negros Oriental.
The 220 who arrived in Cebu were immediately transported to their respective hotels, which will serve as isolation facilities for 14 days.
Before being authorized to travel outside Metro Manila, all of the repatriated OFWs underwent COVID-19 rapid tests that the DOH headquarters and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) warned could give false negative results.
Upon arrival here, OFWs were tested for hyssop as part of Cebu’s precautionary measures against the spread of COVID-19. / dcb
Read below
Disclaimer: Comments posted on this site do not necessarily represent or reflect the views of the management and the owner of Cebudailynews. We reserve the right to exclude comments that we consider inconsistent with our editorial standards.
[ad_2]
