A photo of the Carbon public market courtesy of City Market Operations Division taken on August 23, 2020.
CEBU CITY, Philippines – The Carbon Public Market, Cebu City’s largest wet market, is safe for visiting, said the Department of Health in Central Visayas (DOH -7).
But the regional health office said this does not mean marketgoers and vendors should be complacent and neglect practicing minimum health standards.
DOH-7 on Monday, October 5, 2020, said they noted a low positivity rate in the first wave of pooled swab tests conducted among vendors in Carbon Public Market when only eight of the more than 800 samples tested yielded positive results for SARS-CoV-2.
“We already have 837 samples as of October 4. And out of the 837 samples, eight samples tested positive. This means that we have a low positivity rate,” said Dr. Mary Jean Loreche, spokesperson of DOH -7, in a virtual press conference.
SARS-CoV-2 is the causative agent of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
Cebu City’s Carbon Public Market, which hosts over 4,000 vendors, was chosen as the pilot area for the pooled test initiative of the Project Antibody Rapid Test Kit (ARK).
READ MORE: Successful pooled testing in Carbon Market means extension of program to other sectors – Garganera
It employs the combination of real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and antibody tests to screen for possible COVID-19 infection.
Loreche said the program was intended for surveillance purposes–not for diagnosis–specifically to determine if populous areas where people stay in longer periods, such as Carbon Public Market, are safe from the threats of COVID-19.
Loreche told reporters on Monday that the initial results of the pooled swab testing showed a promising indication that the market is safe.
“We (are) able to say it’s safe since we have a very low positivity rate of nine percent. Very low,” she said.
But the region’s chief pathologist said the outcome is not yet conclusive, and that it should not serve as a license for the public to relax their health protocols when visiting Carbon Public Market.
“However, there is a catch. There’s an ongoing test which will last until Friday. After then only we can analyze everything,” said Loreche.
“Also, just because we have a low positivity rate, and ang nakasalamuha nimo (you’re interacting with someone who is) negative sa atong (in our) RT-PCR, doesn’t mean we need to loosen up our health protocols,” she added.
Loreche said that the pooled testing for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Carbon Public Market is extended until this Friday, October 9.
She said they will be targeting ambulant vendors and stall owners there for the pooled testing program in the coming days.
RELATED STORY: More Carbon vendors to undergo pooled swab testing
Meanwhile, Loreche said they are eyeing to recommend for the initiative to proceed to a Phase 2 trial. In a Phase 2 trial, she said the goal would be to determine the duration of an individual’s immune response when exposed to viral infections such as COVID-19.
/bmjo