DOH-7 on ‘Code White’ vs Ebola

Central Visayas is now on Code White against the Ebola virus. Code White is the highest alert level which means the operations center of the Health Emergency Management Staff of the regional office of the Department of Health (DOH-7) will now be open 24 hours daily.

Dino Caing, section head of the DOH Regional Epidemiology and Surveillance Unit (RESU-7) said that those who have questions or queries about the Ebola virus may contact the DOH-RESU-7 hotline at (032) 418-7010.

Regional Director Jaime Bernadas said he made the declaration on his own initiative.

DOH-7 has also formed a task force primarily tasked to educate the public about the Ebola virus, its symptoms, prevention and control.

Dino Caing, section head of the said there is a need to create a task force to address the imminent health threat.

Last Monday, Caing said Bernadas called for an emergency meeting with representatives from government and private hospitals to discuss guidelines and protocols in handling the virus.

The task force is divided into different committees involved in technical coordination with various agencies, inter-hospital coordination, media and information dissemination, prevention, health education, surveillance, and response, among others.

“We formed the task force after the Health Secretary (Enrique Ona) gave us guidelines on how to prevent and contain this disease,” he told reporters in a press conference at the DOH regional office yesterday.

Prevention

While there is no Ebola case recorded in the Philippines yet, the Bureau of Quarantine (BOQ) in Central Visayas continues with the heightened security at the Mactan Cebu International Airport and ports across the region.

Station Chief Terrence Bermejo said the bureau has had enhanced alertness in the Mactan Cebu International Airport (MCIA) since March of this year.

“It’s a good thing for Cebu that we don’t have direct flights from the Middle East or West Africa,” he said.
At present, the deadly Ebola virus has affected some West African nationals like Liberia, Guinea, Sierra Leone, and Nigeria.

However, Bermejo said they will still have to stringently check health checklists of passengers coming from countries like Singapore, Hongkong, Japan, and South Korea who take transit flights through Cebu.

Two thermal monitors are currently positioned at the MCIA.The quarantine bureau has deployed six nurses at the airport and two nursing aides.

Bermejo said that five to six personnel are on duty 24/7 at any given day.

“We are always on the lookout for suspected cases. We are vigilant and trying not to be complacent. That’s what we are doing,” he said.

Trainings

More than 15 hospital staff members from the Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center (VSMMC) are set to undergo training in the next three days.

Chief of Hospital Gerardo Aquino said a series of lectures will be conducted for the staff to be aware of the disease.

“We need to educate our staff because they will be directly handling the patients,” the doctor said.

The seminar will be on different levels, said Aquino. Employees will be taught the basics. Medical technicians will be taught proper sample collection and proper wearing of equipment, among others, while the doctors will be taught specifically on the management and modalities of treatment.

Aquino added that on the case management side, doctors, medical technicians, and nurses will be sent to the Research Institute of Topic Medicine (RITM) in Mandaluyong City, this October 28 to undergo training.

The doctor said that the hospital also did an emergency purchase of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to ensure its personnel are well-protected from the disease.

PPE includes a gown, a mask or respirator, goggles or face shield, gloves, apron, and shoe cover.

About 6,000 PPE sets have been acquired and are ready to be distributed to private hospitals as well.

VSMMC has six dedicated negative pressure rooms, Aquino said, that are specialized for highly contagious diseases.