BAGUIO CITY – The City Health Services Office is reiterating the health advisories of the Department of Health as preventive measures against the dreaded novel coronavirus or 2019-nCoV.
City Health Officer Dr. Rowena Galpo also advised members of the Filipino-Chinese community in the city to help the city in monitoring their members particularly those with a history of traveling to China especially Wuhan City within the last 10-14 days.
“Please report immediately if anyone who came from those places exhibits any signs and symptoms related to the disease so that that we can take measures and prevent transmission of the virus,” Galpo said.
She said residents should start to be vigilant although there is still no confirmed case of 2019-nCov in the country as of Thursday as results of the tests conducted on a five-year old Chinese boy in Cebu who was suspected to be afflicted with the disease are still being awaited.
As per the DOH advisory, the symptoms to watch out for are having runny nose, headache, cough, sore throat, fever and the feeling of being unwell.
Special attention should be given to those with weakened immune systems including the elderly and the young children as the virus could lead to pneumonia or bronchitis, the health notice says.
As with the other human coronavirus, it spreads through the air by coughing and sneezing; close personal contract such as touching or shaking hands; touching an object or surface with the virus on it then touching your mouth, nose or eyes before washing your hands; and rarely through fecal contamination.
To prevent transmission, one must observe proper hand washing, avoid touching eyes, nose and mouth with unwashed hands, avoid close contact with people who are sick, keep hydrated, cover nose and mouth when sneezing or coughing and immediately consult a medical facility if experiencing the symptoms especially if one has a history of traveling to Wuhan.
2019 nCov is a new type of coronavirus, a family of viruses that include the common cold and viruses such as SARS and MERS. ** Aileen P. Refuerzo
