Assistant Provincial Health Officer Dr. Liland Estacion said she is seeking stricter personal safety measures at checkpoints amid the enhanced community quarantine in the Province.
At a press briefing on Wednesday, she said that during an inspection conducted Tuesday, she and her team observed that some of those manning the checkpoints, particularly the front-liners, were not wearing personal protective equipment like facial masks and gloves.
The inspection was primarily to check on the provincial government’s front-liners’ health status amid the ECQ from April 3 to April 18.
“We have to make sure they are healthy because in Metro Manila, there are already front-liners who are positive (of Covid-19),” Estacion said.
Checkpoints are being manned not only by health personnel but also by the police, military, local government unit employees, and barangay officials, among others.
These front-liners are at high-risk of infection because they are the ones collecting valid ID cards, checking quarantine passes, and doing the thermal scans of motorists coming in and out of Dumaguete, Estacion said.
“They are exposed to many people, some of whom are also not wearing PPEs like facial masks, and the sad part is that as I have observed, there is barely social distancing between these people,” she said.
Under the ECQ, those coming into Dumaguete are asked to present their quarantine passes and deposit a valid ID or driver’s license at the checkpoint in exchange for a claim stub that they will use upon departure from the city.
Estacion said she noticed at one checkpoint that people who were claiming their IDs were gathered around close to each other, in violation of the prescribed safe distance of around three feet between two people.
“I did not even see any alcohol there, and in the absence of this, the front-liners should be washing their hands regularly with soap and water,” she said.
Another observation that the doctor pointed out was the way thermal scanners were being used.
“Those who check the body temperature of a person with the use of a thermal gun should be pointing the unit at that person’s forehead at least at arm’s length,” she said.
Estacion and her team distributed hand gloves to the front-liners at the checkpoints, highlighting the need for them to be wearing these as they are in constant contact with people entering and exiting the city.
Some front-liners also did not have IDs, which Estacion said must be obtained so that they can properly identify themselves and the agency or office that they represent.
She said that she has recommended to Governor Roel Degamo the procurement of lightweight raincoats for distribution to the front-liners at the checkpoints as these would also help lessen the risk of contracting the virus.
The PHO official also appealed to the local governments as well as the uniformed service providers to ensure that their personnel assigned to the checkpoints are properly protected. (Judy F. Partlow/PNA)
