By Rjay Zuriaga Castor
Iloilo City is at the moderate risk classification in COVID-19 cases after seeing a two-week growth rate of 500 percent from July 24 to August 6.
The City Health Office (CHO) reported that in two weeks, the city logged 48 cases compared to the 8 cases recorded from July 10 to July 23.
The spike in recorded cases also resulted in an increase in the average daily attack rate to 0.74 from 0.12 percent.
Iloilo City currently has 255 total confirmed cases, with 33 active cases and 209 recoveries.
There have been 13 reported deaths due to complications caused by the highly contagious infectious disease.
“In January, our cases were high, then they decreased and were almost flat, but suddenly in July and August, our cases gradually increased,” said CHO Medical Office Dr. Jan Reygine Ansino-Hortinela in a press conference on Thursday, August 8.
Ansino-Hortinela added that most cases are recorded in the working-age group, with a median age of 35, and most work in the healthcare industry.
Mandurriao district leads with the highest number of confirmed cases at 48, followed by Jaro I with 46, Jaro II with 41, La Paz with 31, and Molo with 27 cases.
Among barangays, Cubay in Jaro has the most confirmed cases with 11, followed by Abeto Mirasol Taft South in Mandurriao with 8. San Isidro in Jaro and Guzman-Jesena in Mandurriao each have 7 cases.
Amid a recent surge in COVID-19 cases, the CHO urges the public to wear masks in crowded areas and advises frontline workers who interact with multiple clients daily to consistently use protective masks.
It also emphasized the critical importance of regular hand washing and proper cough etiquette to minimize the spread of the virus.
“Hospitals are reminded to reinforce their infection prevention and control measures to limit transmission among healthcare workers,” Ansino-Hortinela said.
She also advised hospitals to prepare for potential case surges by increasing ICU capacity, ventilators, and other essential medical supplies.
The CHO also reminded individuals with flu-like symptoms to stay at home and seek early medical consultation to prevent further spread of the virus.
