MAYOR Maria Isabelle Climaco-Salazar convened on Monday, February 3, an inter-agency coordination and update meeting to address the novel coronavirus acute respiratory disease (2019-nCoV ARD) threat and to ensure preparedness of concerned agencies in mitigating the risks.
The gathering was a follow-through of the January 31 meeting of the City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (CDRRMC) where measures, including protocols and guidelines to help stem the deadly disease, were discussed.
Salazar said the City Government should be proactive in confronting the challenge amid the confirmation of two cases of the 2019-nCoV in the Philippines with one death.
She said the series of meetings is also in compliance with the Department of the Interior and Local Government's (DILG) order directing all local government units to create their respective coronavirus task forces to "help contain the spread of the disease in the country."
Topping the agenda during Monday's meeting were the preparedness of response teams and health facilities, including the need to purchase the necessary equipment according to Department of Health (DOH) requirements and standards and the conduct of massive information campaign to make people aware about the 2019-nCoV.
Meanwhile, the City Government called on the public to refrain from spreading and sharing unverified and misleading information related to the 2019-nCoV to avoid confusion and panic.
"To date, Zamboanga City has no reported case and no person under investigation. No suspected case is admitted in any of the hospitals," said Dr. Dulce Miravite, city health officer.
Miravite urged the public to only share and spread nCoV information from verified and credible sources such as the World Health Organization, Department of Health, and the local government unit official Facebook pages. (SunStar Zamboanga)