Zamboanga City Mayor has asked the Department of Health (DOH) and the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) to extend the services of contact tracers and other Covid-related personnel until December 2021.
In her letter dated December 22, 2020 to Health Secretary Francisco Duque and Interior Secretary Eduardo Año, Climaco said the invaluable services of the nurses and contact tracers are crucial to the city’s sustained effort to battle the Covid-19 pandemic.
At present, Zamboanga City has 3,576 confirmed Covid-19 cases, of which 3,248 are recoveries, 167 active cases and 161 mortalities. Of the total active cases, 42 are admitted at the Zamboanga City Medical Center, 33 are confined in private hospitals while 92 are isolated in facilities handled by the local government unit.
The mayor said one of the city’s challenges has always been the shortage of healthcare workers as well as effective contact tracing.
“Our country is still reeling from Covid-19 pandemic. And while it is true that our country is slowly opening up the economy with concomitant increased of people mobility, the virus is still here and its threat to our health and safety is ever present.
Thus, the need to extend the services of Covid-related personnel until December 2021, said Climaco in her letter to Sec. Duque and Sec. Año.