THE City of San Fernando is currently working on all possible ways to fight the further spread of coronavirus disease (Covid-19) and one of these ways is through mapping being done by city health workers.
Mapping has been helping the city acquire accurate data of individuals who might be declared as persons under monitoring (PUMs) and patients under investigation (PUIs), and handle it properly.
According to Dr. Renely Tungol, City Infectious Cluster program manager, this activity has been implemented since the national government’s declaration of the enhanced community quarantine in Luzon on March 16.
“Yung enhanced community quarantine, isa siyang tamang pagkakataon para mas makapag-strategize at makapag-plano tayo ng measures para labanan ang lalong pagkalat ng Covid-19 at isa na dito ang mapping. Ito yung paraan natin para lalo nating ma-detect ang bilang ng PUMs at PUIs natin at para mabigyan sila ng karampatang serbisyo,” Tungol said.
(The enhanced community quarantine is the right opportunity to strategize and plan measures to fight against the spread of Covid-19 and one of these plans is mapping. This is our way to detect the number of PUMs and PUIs and to give them proper service.)
The mapping is done through the conduct of interviews in every household in all the barangays about the condition and travel history of their household members and for the City Government to check if the Fernandinos are complying with the home quarantine directive.
Tungol imparted that the health workers have been working every day to conduct the mapping and deliver reports to rural health units on the number of PUMs and PUIs in the city.
Meanwhile, the city is now also preparing for the next part after the mapping is done – the re-examination of the PUMs and PUIs who could possibly undergo a confinement for further medication.
Tungol explained that San Fernando will also be tapping the Diosdado P. Macapagal Memorial Hospital in Guagua for the confinement of Fernandino PUIs with mild symptoms, while, the city has prepared two facilities for low-risk and high-risk PUIs, respectively.
The City Health Office also assured that the deployed health care workers are provided with personal protective equipment (PPEs) while doing their duties and are strictly complying with physical distancing measure.
The mapping activity is continuous and is expected to be done before the week ends. (PR)