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Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, November 25) – OCTA research team experts have classified some parts of Luzon and Mindanao as high-risk areas for COVID-19 due to the high positivity rate, high attack rate, and decreased hospital capacity to care for patients with coronavirus.
In its report released Wednesday, OCTA said that for the November 17-23 monitoring period, the areas of concern are the cities of Makati, Baguio, Lucena, Batangas, Davao and Pagadian, as well as the municipality of Capas in Tarlac. .
“We are concerned that these LGUs may experience a heavy hospital burden in the coming weeks that may stress their healthcare systems and overwhelm their front-line physicians,” OCTA said of high-risk areas.
Experts noted that the hospital occupancy rate in the cities of Davao, Makati, Batangas and Pagadian exceeded the high-risk level of 70% during that week, while Lucena has already reached the critical threshold of 85%.
Meanwhile, Baguio recorded an attack rate of 8.3%: the proportion of those who became ill after their exposure to the virus, Capas had an attack rate of 7.6%, while other high-risk areas ranged from 4% and 6.9%. A high attack rate means that more people are getting infected.
Davao City reported the highest number of new cases per day during the follow-up period with 78.
OCTA, however, noted that the situation in Baguio and Davao “has improved significantly and continues to improve due to the adequate and aggressive response of these LGUs.”
Upward trend
An increase in new coronavirus cases has also been observed in Quezon City, Caloocan, Marikina, Parañaque, Pasay, Mandaluyong, Navotas, and San Juan in Metro Manila. It was also observed in the cities of Bacoor, Dasmariñas and Imus in the province of Cavite; Antipolo in Rizal; Sta. Rosa in Laguna; as well as Ángeles City and Mabalacat, both in the province of Pampanga.
OCTA said that while this may be cause for concern, it is not a “cause for alarm,” adding that the situation is still manageable.
Under surveillance
Meanwhile, the government is closely monitoring parts of Mindanao, Calabarzon, and Metro Manila due to a recent spike in infections, COVID-19 task force implementation chief Carlito Gálvez, Jr. said Wednesday.
He said spikes in cases have recently been seen in areas that serve as “hubs” for COVID-19 patients, such as Quezon province and Davao.
“Most of them are hubs, centers, especially Davao. We see all over Mindanao, it is called the central hub. And the Southern Philippines Medical Center in Davao is also home to COVID cases. The same happens with Quezón ”, he added.
[Translation: Most of the areas under monitoring are hubs, centers, especially Davao, which is considered as the central hub in Mindanao. COVID-19 cases usually go to Southern Philippines Medical Center in Davao City.]Limit Christmas celebrations
OCTA warned the public against joining together or hosting social gatherings, noting that the “increasing social mix” between households is fueling the second wave of COVID-19 in Europe and North America.
“To avoid a similar wave here in the Philippines, we encourage the government and LGUs to enforce the current GCQ limit of 10 people per meeting at the NCR and discourage office parties and other social events, especially as we get closer to the Christmas season. ” the group stressed.
“Family gatherings should be limited in size and should be held outdoors to mitigate transmission,” he added.
The Health Department previously said it is creating a contingency plan that will outline the responsibilities of concerned national and local officials once a “post-holiday spike” occurs in the country.
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