GENERAL SANTOS CITY – Sarangani provincial health authorities said they have further tightened their monitoring on returning residents after the province recorded another confirmed case of the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) on Sunday, its second case in two days.
Dr. Arvin Alejandro, the head of the Sarangani health office, on Monday said the latest case was a 26-year-old female from Malapatan town who arrived via the city international airport last June 15 aboard a commercial flight from Manila.
Alejandro said the patient, a locally stranded individual, had stayed in Parañaque, Metro Manila before going home.
The case was first confirmed Sunday evening by the Department of Health in Region 12 based on the result of the reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test released by the Dr. Arturo P. Pingoy Medical Center in Koronadal City.
It said the patient, the fifth Covid-19 case in the province, was in stable condition and closely monitored by health workers.
Sarangani recorded its fourth case only Friday night, a 44-year-old female LSI from Maitum town who also returned home last June 15 from Manila.
Two of the confirmed Covid-19 cases in the area have already recovered.
As of Monday, Alejandro said the province has three active Covid-19 cases, all returning residents, and were recovering well.
Another patient, a 24-year-old LSI from Glan town who returned home from Cebu last May 31, remains under quarantine, he said.
“Rest assured that they are all properly isolated and had no contact with anyone from our communities,” he told reporters.
The official said the designated isolation and quarantine facilities throughout the province were well secured to ensure the strict observance of the “no close contact” protocol for all returning LSI and Overseas Filipino Workers.
He said they make sure that proper safety and health measures were followed by health personnel handling the returning residents.
Upon arrival in airport, seaports, and transport terminals, Alejandro said they were ferried directly to the isolation centers of the province’s seven municipalities.
“All returning individuals are required to undergo 14-day quarantine even if they were already quarantined and tested negative for Covid-19 in their areas of origin,” he added. -PNA
