THE number of confirmed novel coronavirus infections in the Philippines went up to 3,246 while mortalities increased to 152 as of Sunday, April 5.
The Department of Health (DOH) announced Sunday that they have listed 152 additional confirmed cases and eight additional deaths in the last 24 hours.
Seven more persons have recovered from the coronavirus disease (Covid-19), bringing the total number of survivors to 64 as of Sunday.
Globally, the World Health Organization (WHO) said the number of confirmed Covid-19 cases has surged to 1.093 million persons as of April 5, with 58,620 mortalities, in 209 countries.
With the accreditation of the Lung Center of the Philippines (LCP) in Diliman, Quezon City and the Western Visayas Medical Center in Iloilo City, there are now a total of eight health facilities across the country that are capable of conducting diagnostic tests for the novel coronavirus, or Sars-CoV-2, the pathogen that causes Covid-19.
Leading these facilities is the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM) in Muntinlupa, Metro Manila, which is capable of conducting up to 900 diagnostic tests a day.
The LCP can do up to 100 tests a day while the WVMC is capable of 80 tests a day.
The five others are Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center in Cebu City, which can do up to 240 tests a day; Baguio General Hospital and Medical Center, 150 tests a day; San Lazaro Hospital in Manila, 60 to 100 tests a day; Southern Philippines Medical Center in Davao City, 100 tests a day; and UP National Institutes of Health, 80 tests a day.
Five other facilities are undergoing proficiency tests prior to full implementation. These are the Bicol Public Health Laboratory in Legazpo City, Albay; Victoriano Luna Hospital in Diliman; St. Luke’s Medical Center in BGC and Quezon City; and The Medical City in Pasig City. (MVI/SunStar Philippines)