BUTUAN CITY – A total of 196 healthcare workers and 54 other front-liners have been infected in Caraga Region since the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic was declared in March this year, the Department of Health (DOH) said Wednesday.
The number of healthcare workers infected represent 15 percent of the total infection in the region and four percent for the other front-liners, said DOH-13 Director Jose R. Llacuna, Jr.
“Most of the cases of our health workers and front-liners are community-acquired,” Llacuna told the Philippine News Agency in an interview.
He noted that health workers and other front-liners are vulnerable to infection because of the nature of their jobs.
“We are supporting our health workers and front-liners with prevention measures to protect them from being infected while performing their duties and responsibilities,” Llacuna added.
“We already asked our hospitals to provide facilities for their health workers. We also provided them with personal protective equipment to protect them from infection,” he added, even as he lauded the “determination of the health workers and front-liners in Caraga in the continuing fight to defeat the Covid-19”.
Meanwhile, DOH-13 data showed that as of Wednesday, at least 301 locally stranded individuals (LSIs) and 63 returning overseas Filipinos (ROFs) in Caraga were also infected by the virus since March.
So far, Caraga Region has a total of 1,317 cases with 835 recoveries, 438 active cases, and 44 recorded deaths. (PNA)
