ADDITIONAL LAB. Officials of the Qualimed Hospital in Iloilo City meet with Mayor Jerry P. Treñas (right) on Tuesday (July 7, 2020) to update him about their proposed testing laboratory. The mayor said their lab is very timely to get faster results. (PNA photo by Arnold Almacen/CMO)
ILOILO CITY – Another coronavirus disease (Covid-19) testing laboratory will soon open in this city, which can accommodate a maximum of 800 tests a day once its operations go full swing, Mayor Jerry P. Treñas said on Tuesday.
The mayor, in his regular press conference at the city hall, said the testing laboratory at the Qualimed Hospital along Donato Pison Avenue, Mandurriao, is very timely because there is a need for immediate results.
“I am going to explore always on how we can also work with Qualimed so that we can get results immediately, especially for those who have close contacts,” Treñas said.
Officers of the hospital visited the city mayor’s office on Tuesday where the mayor was informed that their proposed reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) laboratory has already passed the proficiency testing last week.
Proficiency testing called for the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM) sending a sample to an applicant laboratory to test. If the result is accurate, the facility will be given a license to operate.
Qualimed’s license to operate a laboratory was released on Monday.
The hospital's laboratory will be the second in the city after the Western Visayas Medical Center (WVMC) sub-national laboratory started operating last March 23.
Meanwhile, Treñas also announced that he would be checking on the health protocols of the various malls in this city on Wednesday.
He said this as he added that there are no changes in the protocol here amid the pronouncement of the Department of Health-Center for Health Development in Western Visayas (DOH-CHD6) that the region, particularly this city, has low-level local transmission of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19).
The mayor said that the virus will be there as long as there is no vaccine. People, he said, could not remain in their houses forever because they have to work to feed their families.
“We have to work beyond the virus. We have to work alongside the virus,” he said.
He added that what is important is that people take good care of themselves by not touching their faces with their hands, using face masks, washing hands regularly, and observing safe physical distancing.
On Monday, DOH regional epidemiologist Dr. Jessie Glen Alonsabe in a virtual presser said that Western Visayas, particularly Iloilo City, has a low-level community transmission due to the influx of locally stranded individuals (LSIs) and the previous cases that were recorded.
Data from the DOH showed that as of Monday there were 389 confirmed Covid-19 cases in the region with 226 considered active cases or those who have not yet recovered, with 152 recoveries and 11 deaths. (PNA)
