Sarangani Gov. Steve Chiongbian Solon. (File photo courtesy of the provincial government)
GENERAL SANTOS CITY – The provincial government of Sarangani is planning to adopt an electronic or digital tracking system to enhance the contact-tracing for confirmed and suspected coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) cases in the area, an official said on Monday.
Sarangani Gov. Steve Chiongbian-Solon said they are currently conducting simulation activities for at least two contact-tracing applications that were developed to help track down the movement of people in local communities.
Solon cited the StaySafe PH mobile application endorsed by the Department of the Interior and Local Government and the Malungon Tracking Data and Control (MTDC) system of Malungon town.
Developed by Multisys Technologies Corporation, StaySafe PH is a “digital bayanihan platform with health condition reporting, social distancing, and contact tracing system”.
MTDC is a digital logbook system adopted by the municipal government of Malungon to help fast track the contact-tracing for Covid-19 cases.
Under the scheme, residents are registered and issued with quick response or QR-coded identification cards to record and track their movements when entering establishments and offices in the area.
“We’re determining which program works better. (But) we might merge the two for more complete tracking,” Solon told reporters, adding contact-tracing system will then be replicated in the province’s six other municipalities.
The municipal government of Malungon started last week the registration of residents, establishments, and other entities into the MTDC through its official website www.malungon.ph.
Mayor Maria Theresa Constantino said in a statement they adopted the system as an alternative to manual logbooks, which is usually less accurate and take some time to encode into their database.
Constantino assured that the information collected from residents are properly secured based on the provisions of the Data Privacy Act.
The mayor said they will fully implement the MTDC on Friday, Aug. 28, and all residents and visitors who have no QR-coded cards will not be allowed to enter the municipality.
As of Monday morning, the confirmed Covid-19 cases in Sarangani already reached a total of 73, with 57 recoveries.
The latest case, which was recorded on Sunday, is a 26-year-old male with travel history from Davao City. The patient, along with the 15 other remaining active cases, are all in stable condition. (PNA)
