New suspected COVID-19 carrier recorded in Quezon

LUCENA CITY – The health authorities in Quezon province announced that a new suspected carrier of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) classified as patient under investigation (PUI) was recorded on Saturday.

In a public advisory at 5 p.m. Saturday, the Integrated Provincial Health Office (IPHO) said the new PUI is confined in an undisclosed hospital in the province and is being attended to by the Department of Health (DOH) and IPHO medical staff while awaiting the result of the specimen tests from the national reference laboratory.

The PUIs are those who recently traveled to mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau and other countries with confirmed COVID-19 cases who have consulted doctors due to coughs, cold, or fever after they returned home.

“We’re still getting our facts,” Dr. Grace Santiago, Quezon health officer, replied in an online interview when asked for further details about the new PUI.

The public advisory was signed by Santiago and Dr. Anneavbit Talan-De Luna, provincial medical coordinator.

On Saturday, the DOH reported three new cases of confirmed COVID-19 patients, which makes the total number of confirmed cases to six. Of the six cases, three were Filipinos.

The IPHO emphasized that as of Saturday, “Quezon remains negative for COVID-19 cases.”

The seven PUIs recorded earlier have tested negative for the virus and have been discharged from hospitals and sent home.

The local health authorities also recorded a total of 81 possible virus carriers classified as person under monitoring (PUM) status in the province. But at least 74 have completed the mandatory 14-day home quarantine period and remained healthy and without any respiratory symptoms, the IPHO said.

The remaining seven PUMs were still under home quarantine and close observation.

The PUMs are those who recently traveled to places abroad with confirmed COVID-19 cases “but showed no respiratory symptoms and were advised to go into home quarantine” immediately after their arrival.