IATF to hospitals: Ask consent of COVID-19 patients before disclosing names

Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles attends the DOH briefing on COVID-19. Screengrab from the Department of Health Facebook page.

MANILA, Philippines — Hospitals and other health facilities have been directed to ask consent of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) patients admitted in their facilities before disclosing their identities.

The Inter-agency Task Force (IATF) for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases spokesperson and Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles on Friday said this is to help health officials with regards to contact tracing.

“To encourage the voluntary coordination with epidemiology and surveillance units of close contacts of patients who tested positive for COVID-19 and subject to the rights of patients to withhold consent, all health facilities whether public or private are hereby directed to request for the consent of said patients for the public disclosure of their identities,” Nograles said in a televised address, reading the latest resolution of the task force.

“Pakisusap po, para matulungan yung contact tracing, paki-ask po ng permission ng mga COVID-19 patients, if they are willing to disclose their identities to the public,” he added.

As of Friday, there are already 803 confirmed COVID-19 cases in the country. Of the number, 54 have already died.

With the continuous swelling in the number of cases, the IATF also directed local government units to identify government buildings that can be converted into isolation or quarantine facilities for COVID-19 patients.

“Subject to guidelines to be issued by the Department of the Interior and Local Government, the local government units in the provincial, city, municipal and barangay levels as well as those in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao are hereby directed to identify government facilities that may be temporarily be converted into isolation or quarantine facilities,” Nograles said.

The Department of Tourism (DOT) and other government agencies are also directed to identify establishments that may be used for isolation purposes.

Several hospitals recently announced that they have already reached their full capacity for COVID-19 cases.

Edited by JPV