DOH: More COVID-19 testing labs expected to open
MANILA, Philippines — More coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) testing laboratories are expected to open within the week, the Department of Health (DOH) assured Monday.
This will allow the government to conduct more tests for COVID-19 cases in the country.
Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said that DOH is still waiting for the proficiency testing results of St. Luke’s Medical Center in Quezon City and Bonifacio Global City (BGC).
“We are expecting na within the week makapagbukas pa tayo ng private laboratories naman na na-assess natin at nakita naman nating capable po sila,” Vergeire said in a Laging Handa briefing.
We are expecting to open private laboratories within the week that we have assessed found to be capable.)
Meanwhile, there are about 30 laboratories that have expressed interest in becoming sub-national laboratories. The DOH has yet to assess their capabilities.
“Hopefully, in the coming days and weeks madadagdagan pa ‘yung mayroon na tayo ngayon,” Vergeire said.
(Hopefully, in the coming days and weeks, the number of our laboratories will increase.)
At present, there six laboratories / facilities that could conduct COVID-19 testing – San Lazaro Hospital in Manila, Baguio General Hospital and Medical Center, Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center in Cebu City and the Southern Philippines Medical Center in Davao City, Lung Center of the Philippines in Quezon City and Research Institute for Tropical Medicine in Muntinlupa City.
PH now has 4 more laboratories to test patients for COVID-19
With the expanded capability of the country to conduct COVID-19 testing, cases of the disease are expected to further increase to reflect the actual trend of the disease.
To date, there are a total of 1,418 COVID-19 cases in the Philippines, with 71 fatalities and 42 recoveries.
The DOH is expected to conduct at least 1,000 tests for COVID-19 a day with the expanded capability of laboratories in the country.
GSG
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For more information on COVID-19, call the DOH Hotline: (02) 86517800 local 1149/1150.
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