It was the first time that the number of active cases in the country reached more than 100,000. But the number of people impacted by persons currently with Covid-19 runs in the millions.
The easily transmissible Delta variant is being blamed for the drastic rise in coronavirus disease (Covid-19) cases in the country in the past weeks. The number of active cases as of Sunday, August 22, 2021, is at 125,900 based on the Department of Health (DOH) tracker. It is computed by getting the number of confirmed cases minus the number of recovered cases and deaths.
Active cases are persons with laboratory confirmation of infection of the Sars-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid-19, and are still considered to be infectious. They are either in hospitals, other medical facilities, or in isolation centers unless they cannot be reached by barangay health workers and are probably in their homes. Many of them have not been vaccinated.
Active cases reached 100,000 starting last week, the first time for our country, with health officials blaming the Delta variant for the rapid transmission. In some cases, those infected belong to the same family, same household, with two or more members requiring their transfer to hospitals or isolation hotels or centers.
Imagine the number of people impacted by the 125,900 persons currently with infection. That means that, for every active case, there are family members here and abroad, relatives, loved ones, and office colleagues who are scrambling to get supplies such as Tocilizumab and Remdesivir, going on Zoom or Facetime or Messenger Room to regularly check up on you and pray together, and gathering what money they may have to help pay for hospitalization or a hotel stay in isolation.
A typical Filipino family is considered to have seven to more members. I guess it’s safe to place the number at 10 to include those outside of family who may have been impacted. Multiply 125,900 by 10 and you get 1,259,000 whose lives are upended because of their concern for you.
Not counted are neighbors and others who worry they may have to be swabbed because they were in close contact with you.
That is the real meaning of the term “active cases” as reported by the DOH. It’s not simply about the number of people who are sick and needing to be isolated but about the people around you whose lives are upended and who are emotionally and physically invested in getting you well.
DOH data show that many of the active cases are people who have not been vaccinated or have not completed the two doses of the vaccine. With the Delta vaccine being easily transmissible, then there are more chances for others to get infected as well.
Get vaccinated as soon as you can because it is not only you who suffer when you get sick. Protect the people around you, those who love and care for you, because they are the ones you will run to when you are infected.