Bacolod mounts massive contact tracing

By Dolly Yasa

BACOLOD City – Mayor Evelio Leonardia  declared Monday a massive manhunt to be conducted by the police and the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group as part of the “contact tracing” of persons who were exposed to the first confirmed coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) case here.

“It is going to be intensive.” Leonardia said.

He said the 56-year-old male patient is in complete isolation and doing well.

With Leonardia in the presscon are Dr. Grace Tan and Coast Guard Bacolod head, Jansen Benjamin.

Vice Mayor El Cid Familiaran, head of the City Inter-Agency Task Group against corona virus, earlier expressed disappointment that people who came in contact with the patient refused to cooperate.

Dr. Grace Tan of the City Health Office said they cannot determine how many people had contact with the patient.

“It’s massive,” Tan said.

 

PATIENT IMPROVING

Dr. Tansaid the condition of the first COVID-19 patient here is improving, based on information from the hospital where he is being treated.

There is no advice yet when he will be discharged from the hospital.

Tan also denied the report from the Regional Risk Reduction and Management Council that they recorded one mortality here in its summary of COVID-19 cases in the region as of March 22, 2020.

Tan said Bacolod City has 23 persons under investigation (PUIs) admitted to various hospitals since Feb 2, 2020.

PUIs are persons with signs and symptoms and have travel history to infected areas

Tan said 17 were discharged, and 15 tested negative for COVID-19.

Persons under monitoring (PUM) numbered to 1,294. A PUM is a person who has no signs and symptoms of COVID-19 but has travel history to infected areas and may have been exposed to infected persons.