For Its Year-End Review, Duque Gives DOH “9-10” Rating For COVID Response Efforts
DUQUE GIVES DOH “9-10” RATING – Health Secretary Francisco Duque III, gave the Health Department a rating of “9-10”.
As 2020 comes to a close, Duque gave the Department of Health an almost perfect rating for its COVID-19 response. According to an article from Philstar, Duque said:
“From what I see on the ground and in my interactions with the DOH team, I would give them 9-10 in terms of great effort to contribute to the national government’s coronavirus response in every aspect of our five-point strategy against COVID-19”
During the early days of the outbreak, Duque himself was seen on the frontlines implementing distancing protocols with meter sticks. He was also seen personally giving out Personal Protective Equipment (PPEs). However, some might say that those photos of him were edited.
Following this, Duque and the DOH itself were involved in several controversies such as the late hazard pay to nurses. But, once the issue went public, Duque himself sought to fix the problems.
There were also several calls from both senators and medical professionals to remove Duque from his post. According to both parties, the health secretary should be accountable for his “neglect, incompetence, shortcomings, and failures”.
Still, despite the controversies surrounding Duque and the DOH, the health secretary apparently remains an integral part of the government’s pandemic response. As such, as per the article, Duque said he “salutes everyone in the DOH“.
Furthermore, Duque admits that there were “missteps and mistakes” in their response. But, he quickly turned this into a positive and said that those mistakes “serve as lessons” for a more successful fight against COVID-19.
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