PH Reports First Case Of UK Coronavirus From Filipino Returning From Dubai
PH REPORTS NEW VIRUS STRAIN – Recently, Philippine health authorities reported the first case of the new coronavirus strain from the UK.
For many, this first case becomes reminiscent of the transpiring events of February 2020. Then, the Philippines had just reported its first cases of COVID-19 from Chinese tourists. At that point, there were merely three coronavirus cases in the country.
As such, with the detection of a new, more transmissible coronavirus variant, the public hopes the country had learned its lesson.
Luckily, with almost a year’s worth of experience handling the coronavirus, treatment czar Health Undersecretary Leopoldo Vega emphasized the importance of contact tracing. During an interview with ABS-CBN’s Teleradyo he said:
“Pinaka-importante ho dito would be contact tracing agad kung sino man ang naging direct contact up to 3rd level of generation contact at ma-quarantine talaga for 14 days…
Dapat mas madalas, regular na ang biosurveillance ng positive sample… atsaka yung mga positive cases na galing sa restrictive areas kailangan masampling sila lahat sa Philippine Genome Center“
Furthermore, he noted that the government should build a separate ward for patients who caught the new variant in the event that it spreads.
Currently, the country had reported 1 case of the new coronavirus variant from the U.K. Health Secretary Francisco Duque said the strain was found in a 29-year-old male who returned from Dubai last January 7.
“The Philippine Genome Center (PGC) today officially confirm the detection of the B.1.1.7. SARS-CoV-2 variant (UK variant) in the country after samples from a Filipino who arrived from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on January 7 yielded positive genome sequencing results”
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