Davao City – The Davao City government will continue to expand its surveillance swabbing activities for individuals to track down possible Covid-19 infections as slight increase in the number of confirmed cases last week had been recorded.
Sidewalk vendors, laborers, passenger boat operators, and other labor workforce at the Sasa Wharf and Market are scheduled to get tested on May 13, while laborers and other labor workforce at the Toril Fish Port are on May 14.
The city government through the City Health Office will also be conducting swab testing on the victims of the Barangay Ilang and Barangay Tibungco fire incidents in their designated evacuation centers while some government and private employees are also targeted to be tested under the heightened surveillance swabbing in the city.
The city government also continued to implement its contact tracing and mandatory swabbing for second and third or F2 and F3 generation of close contacts with a total number of 5,533 close contacts recorded from May 2 to May 8.
Meanwhile, Davao City Health Office (CHO) Acting Head Dr. Ashley Lopez on Thursday, May 13, during the ‘Madayaw Dabaw’ program on 87.5 FM Davao City Disaster Radio, said that swabbing corners in some district health centers in the city have already operated.
“Atong swab units sa mga district offices are already open. Kasagaran sa mga district health offices nato naa na pud na silay swab units. Ato nang gi-mandate ang pag-implement sa ILI surveillance activities sa atong mga district health centers (The swab units in our district offices are already open. Most of our district health offices have their own swab units. We have already mandated the implementation of the [influenza-like illness] ILI surveillance activities in our district health centers),” Lopez said.
Aside from the main swab center in Sta. Ana, Lopez said that district health offices in Tibungco, Toril, Calinan and Talomo can also accommodate individuals for Covid-19 testing.
“Naga-conduct na sila og consultations diha tanan nga nay ubo, sip-on ug kalintura nga moabot na’g napulo ka adlaw o ubos kinahanglan nga magpaswab na (They are conducting consultations for individuals who are experiencing influenza-like illness such as cough, colds, and fever within 10 days),” Lopez added while urging Davao residents to go to their nearest health centers for consultation.
Lopez said that district health offices will conduct swab testing three times a week due to the limited number of swabbers and medical staff.
According to Lopez, the increase in the trend of cases in the past week is the result of the intensified active-case finding and surveillance activities in the city.
He added that Davao City still has a low daily positivity rate of less than 5%. (City Information Office)