Filipino patients at the Negros Oriental Provincial Hospital who had displayed flu-like symptoms after having contact with a Chinese couple who had contracted the novel Coronavirus last week have been declared nCoV-free.
Dr. Liland Bustamante- Estacion, head of the nCoV Incident Command System, made the announcement after receiving the results of the tests done on the swabs submitted by the patients to a government laboratory in Manila.
As of Thursday, the Epidemiology Bureau and the Philippine National Police-Criminal Investigation & Detection Group have identified all the 441 contacts of the first and second case of the 2019 novel Coronavirus in the Philippines.
Of the figure, 379 constituted passengers and crew from flights taken by the confirmed cases, while 62 contacts were from the hotels, resorts, hospitals, public vehicles, and other places visited by the confirmed cases, Department of Health spokesperson Eric Domingo said in a press briefing.
Estacion declined to say whether these patients are male or female but assured they are now being given the proper treatment for flu-like symptoms such as cough, colds, and flu.
They are all Filipinos, she said.
They were among many people who came to the NOPH Sunday afternoon for screening, and as of the latest report from health authorities here, 25 are persons under monitoring (PUMs) and five are persons under investigation (PUIs), said Capitol Public Information Officer Bimbo Miraflor, also ICS spokesperson for nCoV of the Province.
PUMs are those who came in close contact with the Chinese nationals but need not be admitted in the hospital in the absence of symptoms, but have to undertake self-quarantine, limit exposure to people, and submit themselves for a medical checkup once they manifest symptoms, he said.
PUIs are those who came in contact with the confirmed cases, and have manifested flu-like symptoms.
She said the voluntary appearance of the people being tracked down is a result of the contact-tracing done by the DOH Epidemiological Surveillance team from Manila, and from the DOH-Region 7 in the past days since news broke out that a 38-year-old Chinese woman from Wuhan who tested positive of the nCoV had visited Negros Oriental.
The Chinese patient’s companion, a 44-year-old Chinese male, had died on Feb. 1 in a hospital in Manila while the woman was undergoing treatment.
The travel history of the two Chinese nationals showed that they left Wuhan via Hong Kong on Jan. 20, arrived on Jan. 21 in Cebu, proceeded to Dumaguete on Jan. 22, and departed for Manila on Jan. 25.
“Now that we have PUIs who have manifested flu-like symptoms after coming into close contact with the Chinese nationals, we will exert all efforts to track down all the people who had come into contact with them,” Estacion said.
Meanwhile, a request has been made to the DOH to extend the stay of the Epidemiological Surveillance Team here until after Feb. 8, the last day of the 14-day incubation period of the novel Coronavirus, Estacion said.
“We are counting starting from the last day of contact between the Chinese nationals and the people here; so that means, we are still not safe to say that we are clear of the virus,” she said.
Estacion said they are ready, in case suspected nCoV patients would seek admission.
“We can give the support and besides, the DOH in Region 7 is prepared to give us the necessary requirements, such as doctors to augment the current staff here,” she said.
They don’t need to be transferred to another facility, she added.
Estacion is asking the public to cooperate in whatever way they can to help prevent local transmission of the virus. (Judy F. Partlow/PNA)
