WITH Covid-19 treatment facilities in Davao City being overwhelmed with the surge of cases, the City Government revealed that 365 patients are currently under home isolation.
Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio said in a radio interview on Monday, September 20, that these are the patients that had been allowed to stay at home, for the meantime, while the city's isolation facilities are fully occupied.
But the mayor clarified “these are for asymptomatic and mild cases only,” and that moderate, severe, and critical cases will still have to be transferred to medical facilities to prevent complications.
Based on the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Guidelines on the stricter conduct of home quarantine for mild and asymptomatic Covid-19 patients, positive patients are only allowed to be isolated at home so long as the patient has his/her own room and bathroom, and is not living with vulnerable household members like senior citizens, people with underlying health conditions, and pregnant women.
The mayor said patients in home isolation are assisted via telemedicine and provided with Caring for People Awaiting Transport (CPAT) kits.
“They are assisted remotely by the Covid-19 Task Force. If they are in home isolation, people who lived with them should always wear a face mask and they [Covid-19 positive] must have their own bedroom and comfort room. The CPAT kits will be used for monitoring their oxygen level and [the recording] of their vitamin intakes,” Duterte-Carpio said in an interview on 87.5 FM Davao City Disaster Radio.
She added the district health officials will be the ones to assess if a patient is qualified for home isolation.
Duterte-Carpio, however, clarified that home isolation will only be suggested if the temporary treatment and monitoring facilities (TTMF) in the city are already fully occupied.
The mayor said the facility isolation is the “number one priority” to reduce the risk inside the household. She added that when the TTMF group announces that it cannot accommodate more patients, that is the only time the city will look through the positive cases who are qualified for home isolation.
Duterte-Carpio recently said the city is preparing for the implementation of home isolation for Covid-19 patients in anticipation of an overspill of patients at hospitals.
The mayor said there are already the guidelines, and that it is set to be issued to the public on an indefinite date.
The health group of the response cluster, who crafted the guidelines, is currently coordinating with the district health offices on how to manage home isolation.
Previously, the City Government did not allow home isolation and quarantine, in accordance with the policy of the national government.