Health workers have noted a marked increase in the number of symptomatic Covid-19 cases or walk-in patients who sought consultation after experiencing Covid-19-related symptoms in the city.
Covid-19 statistics from the data analysis unit of the contact tracing operation center showed symptomatic patients now comprise 12.8 percent of the total number of confirmed cases.
Data analyst Mischelle Junio said this could be a cause of concern as it indicates an upward trend for random Covid-19 cases in the city.
She said the cold weather may have started to factor in as expected and people have to double their efforts in strengthening their immune system.
City Health Officer Rowena Galpo said the increasing number of symptomatic cases can be a good sign that people are now aware of the symptoms and the need for prevention of the spread of the disease.
“They seek consultation due to symptoms of cough, colds, and fever and this helps in the early detection of the disease,” she said.
As of Nov. 11, contact tracing remains as the top reason for finding confirmed cases in the city accounting for 65.9 percent of the total number of cases followed by expanded testing at 16.6 percent and other reasons (travel, medical procedure requirement etc.) at 4.18 percent.
Junio said the fact that most of the city’s cases were found through deliberate means like contact tracing and expanded testing and the reality that it has a high testing capacity had set off Baguio City from other localities, most of which do not have high testing capacities and programs on contact tracing.
“That is why we can’t conclude that Baguio is more high risk than other local government units without taking into account the testing capacities of all of these places,” she said. – Aileen P. Refuerzo
