THE Healthcare Professionals Alliance Against COVID-19 (HPAAC) has urged Thursday the national government to scrutinize its COVID-19 data reporting system which—as they claimed—fails to illustrate the real situation of the country on the ground.
This, following the pilot imposition of granular lockdowns in the National Capital Region (NCR) with five-point scale alert levels whose basis depends on the data reporting system.
In a statement, the health workers alliance recognized that Metro Manila will be placed under general community quarantine (GCQ) with Alert Level 4 starting September 16, which they find untimely upon observing the woes caused by the highly transmissible Delta variant and the COVID-19 situation across the country as a whole.
“In this new system, NCR will be placed on Alert Level 4, which entails lighter quarantine restrictions than MECQ. This comes at a time when we face the worst surge of COVID- 19 cases in the Philippines. We now register more cases than at any other time since the pandemic started. Health facilities are overwhelmed, resulting in patients dying unattended at home, in ambulances, or in corridors,” the HPAAC said.
With the new scheme, case rates and healthcare utilization rates will take into account by local government units (LGUs) so as to decide whether or not an area has to be placed under a granular lockdown.
“Based on this premise, we are inclined to believe that the proposed scheme, which claims to use pandemic severity and healthcare utilization data in deciding the alert level, does not reflect the true situation on the ground. We therefore strongly urge the government to acknowledge and address the inadequacies of our data reporting system that forms the basis for the alert levels,” the alliance stated.
The group further appealed for the administration to (1) conduct a central digital contact tracing; (2) increase COVID-19 testing; (3) provide an appropriate compensation and recognition for healthcare workers; (4) enhance the distribution of ayuda, vaccination drives, and coordination between facilities and local government units; and (4) improve air circulation in all facilities.
The HPAAC said only with the help and support of the government in such manner could they “achieve longer relief” from the global crisis.
It further asked the public to adhere and comply with the minimum health protocols by preventing themselves from traveling outside their residences if deemed unnecessary.
The healthcare workers group lastly emphasized that there is no need to lash out at each other should the nation wants to heal and survive from the pandemic—subtly insinuating Presidential spokesman Harry Roque’s recent outburst at doctors.
“We believe the country and our economy can survive this pandemic if we work together and listen closely to each other without insulting each other or losing our temper,” the HPAAC expressed.