COVID-19 SURVEILLANCE. Personnel of the Tacloban City’s management information system prepare pass cards that will be used in its digital Covid-19 surveillance system in this July 1, 2020 photo. Mayor Alfred Romualdez on Wednesday (July 8, 2020) said they target the full implementation of its surveillance, contact tracing, analysis, and networking or SCAN system on July 16 and will take effect while the public health emergency subsists. (Photo courtesy of Tacloban City government)
TACLOBAN CITY – The city government here is eyeing to register persons, whether permanent or temporary residents, transients, or tourists, in its digital surveillance system for coronavirus disease (Covid-19).
In a statement on Wednesday, Mayor Alfred Romualdez said they target the full implementation of its surveillance, contact tracing, analysis, and networking (SCAN) system on July 16 and will take effect while the public health emergency is ongoing.
“This digital platform for our Covid-19 surveillance activities will be made available to the public for the systematic collection, analysis, storage, and dissemination of information, specifically the name, address, and contact details of the registrant so that public health officers can use the same for Covid-19 responses,” he added.
Any individual in Tacloban can register online through its Safe City application that can be downloaded for free at https://safecity.tacloban.gov.ph/ or by filling out the registration forms at the village where the person resides and at the border control points for non-residents entering the city.
The registrants will be given unique SCAN cards or QR codes that can be scanned as identification before entry at every participating office, establishment, or industry.
“To have an expedient and effective surveillance system, it is imperative that there will be real-time information about the customers, clients, and other individuals who have entered a particular establishment, at a given date and time,” Romualdez said.
All establishments must download the Tacloban Safe City app on a smartphone, tablet, or mobile device that has a camera and capable of reading or scanning a QR code.
The security guard or any authorized personnel assigned at the entrance, using the device, will scan the QR code of each client entering the establishment to verify their identity.
“The application will either prompt that the registered person is clear or alarm when a known Covid-19 positive, probable, or suspected person is about to enter, in which case, he or she be denied entry. The application will also log all entries of individuals, including the QR code, ID number, name of the establishment, and date and time of entry,” Romualdez said.
The SCAN cards or QR codes may also serve as an alternative to the existing barangay (village) quarantine passes, he added.
To date, Tacloban has confirmed a total of 58 Covid-19 cases, with three active cases, 55 recoveries, and zero death, the city health office said.
Meanwhile, Eastern Visayas has confirmed a total of 590 cases, including 476 recoveries and three deaths from Leyte, Biliran, and Samar provinces.
Most cases in the region are returning residents, including locally stranded individuals and overseas Filipino workers, the Department of Health said. (PNA)
