Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 3) — Hundreds of residents crowded a school ground in Mandaluyong City after losing their homes to a fire at Barangay Addition Hills Monday night.
Many are now staying in an evacuation center, with very little to no chance to observe social distancing, amid the threat of the coronavirus disease.
Infectious disease specialist Dr. Rontgene Solante in an online forum on Wednesday said situations like this could “really (be) a nightmare” as the coronavirus could easily spread through respiratory droplets in crowded places.
To avoid clustering of cases, Solante said local government officials should still be able to follow the basic infection prevention control measures.
Among these is an all-day screening of everyone at the evacuation center for any red-flag symptoms of COVID-19 infection such as fever, cough, shortness of breath, headache, and diarrhea.
“The most important part is monitoring those with symptoms. Once they are able to determine symptomatic, they have to be isolated and separated for that period,” Solante told reporters in a press briefing held by the Pharmaceutical and Healthcare Association of the Philippines.
Evacuees must also wear surgical masks all the time. Local officials should be able to provide an area where people can regularly wash their hands. The evacuation area must be kept clean at all times too to provide protection, including for other diseases like dengue.
The infectious disease expert also said rapid antibody testing could be an option in screening evacuees, especially before sending them home.
Solante, however, reminded local officials that antibody tests must only be used to screen symptomatic patients. A rapid test detects the presence of antibodies that a person’s body may not be able to produce during the early stages of infection.
“The utility and sensitivity of this test is also in question if you don’t have symptoms. That’s why we always advise them to, if you do this test, always do the symptom based screening,” Solante said.
Those who will test positive for IgM or immunoglobulin M may be subjected to an RT-PCR test to determine if the person is infected with SARS-CoV2. He said antibody is most helpful when RT-PCR test is not easily accessible.
An RT-PCR test is considered as “the gold standard” for coronavirus testing because it can detect the actual presence of the virus, even when the patient is asymptomatic or not showing any symptoms.
