EOC firms up plans as cases continue to rise

By Dolly Yasa

 

BACOLOD City – Intensify. Expand. Maximize.

These words sum up the plans tackled during the regular huddle of the Bacolod City Emergency Operations Center (EOC) cluster heads in view of the continuing rise of the coronavirus disease 2019 or COVID-19 cases in the city.

As of Thursday, March 15, Bacolod City has 81 new cases, 21 new recoveries, and 2 new deaths, data from the Department of Health-6 showed. Of the 81 new cases, 77 are local transmission, 3 are ROFs and 1 is an LSI.

The city also has 582 active aces.

City Administrator Em Ang, executive director of the EOC, said that among the matters discussed during the huddle were to further intensify contact tracing, to expand targeted testing, to strictly observe extraction and isolation protocols, and to increase capacity of quarantine facilities.

“The EOC also tackled continuous coordination with the barangays, the healthcare system, and other sectors,” she added.

The EOC will continue promoting its information and education campaign, with the goal of spreading awareness among Bacolodnons on taking preventive measures against the continuous spread of the dreaded coronavirus.

“COVID-19 is everywhere,” warned EOC deputy medical and volunteer Dr. Chris Sorongon, who tested positive for COVID-19 recently.

To underscore his point on avoiding super spreader events, Sorongon cited a COVID-19 index who contracted the virus while dining in a restaurant in the city.

“Follow minimum health protocols like the wearing of face masks and face shields. Maintain hand hygiene and physical distancing. Please avoid major spreader events like mass gatherings and dining out,” the deputy medical said.

Meanwhile, Bacolod City Police Office (BCPO) director Col. Manuel Placido committed to deploy additional police officers as augmentation for the contact tracing cluster of the EOC.

“Thanks to BCPO head Col. Manuel Placido for committing to assign additional PNP men to our contact tracing team,” Ang said.

This came about after Contact Tracing head Dr. Rosalie Deocampo requested for additional workforce in their operations.

The increasing number of cases resulted in their increased workload, Deocampo said.

Created by Executive Order No. 59, Series of 2020, the EOC is a centralized, synchronized, collaborated, coordinated, and data-driven body that aims to defeat COVID-19 in Bacolod.

Also joining the meeting were EOC deputy for medical Dr. Anna Maria Laarni Pornan, who is also the head of the Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office; Contact Tracing head Police Major Sherlock Gabana, EOC Data Management head Edrian Robete, Dr. Monica Anna Locsin of the Committee of Quarantine Facilities, Secretariat head Teresa Manalili, and Extraction Cluster staff. (With a report from City PIO)