Mindanao needs more Covid-19 testing centers
GENERAL SANTOS CITY: The local government units of General Santos City South Cotabato and Saranggani have appealed to the national government and the Department of Health (DoH) to designate a coronavirus disease (Covid-19) testing facility exclusively for the Mindanao region.
General Santos City City Mayor Ronnel Rivera, South Cotabato First District Rep. Shirlyn BañasNograles, South Cotabato Second District Rep. Ferdinand Hernandez and Sarangani Lone District Rep. Rogelio Pacquiao submitted a letter to President Rodrigo Duterte, Sen. Christopher Lawrence “Bong” Go and Health Secretary Francisco Duque 3rd seeking an approval to designate a Covid-19 testing facility that could be accessible to their provinces.
The petition asked the Health department to consider the Mindanao State University ( MSU)General Santos campus as the Covid- 19 testing facility. MSU is equipped with a polymerase chain reaction ( PCR) machine and has a microbiology laboratory with biosafety level 2 cabinet.
Dr. Jett Oco, city health office department head, said the enhanced quarantine had made it difficult to air transport swab samples of persons under investigation and persons under monitoring in the city, Saranggani
and South Cotabato.
“Our problem is we cannot send the swab samples to Manila because of the travel ban in Luzon,” Oco said. “We would like to hasten the testing to prevent the disease from further spreading.”
“We are requesting the DoH to make the necessary evaluation for the feasibility of the testing center,” Mayor Rivera said.
In a separate letter signed by the officials addressed to DoH-Region 12 (Soccsksargen) director Dr. Aristides Tan, Rivera cited that MSU has “expressed willingness to allow the use of its facilities to help in fighting the spread of Covid-19.”
The DoH has assigned the Southern Philippines Medical Center in Davao City as the first testing center for Covid-19 in Mindanao but having more would help contain the virus, he added.
“[ MSU- General Santos] has graciously offered the use of their PCR machine,” Rivera told the ManilaTimes, assuring the protocols laid down by the Health department would be strictly followed since the testing center’s operation would involve the handling of live virus.
“The consequence when Covid-19 testing is delayed is that the infected patient could have infected a lot of people already, and proper precaution was not observed because the sickness was only classified as severe pneumonia. That is why we need a Covid- 19 testing center in GenSan,” said Alfredo Bronx Hebrona Jr., the private sector representative of Regional Development Council 12
Hebrona called for support from the “Soccsksargen community” regarding the proposal and noted that its “major hurdles” include budget and accreditation by the DoH and the World Health Organization.