Bohol’s third coronavirus disease 2019 survivor has opted to stay at the hospital even after she tested negative for the disease as her house in Tagbilaran City remains on lockdown.
The 65-year-old woman who recovered from the dreaded disease was given the option to stay at a quarantine facility of the local government unit (LGU) but she preferred to remain at the Ace Medical Center where she is able to be in the same room as her daughter, said Tagbilaran City Health Officer Dr. Jeia Pondoc.
“Ni opt sila adto na lang kaysa amo quarantine facility kay mabuwag man sila og room sa iyang anak if didto,” she said.
Pondoc explained that the patient is staying in one room with her daughter at the hospital but there is a glass divider which keeps them at a distance from each other, while they would have been billeted in separate rooms at the LGU facility.
The patient was supposed to be discharged on Thursday morning after results of a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test which indicated she was already negative for the disease were released on Wednesday afternoon.
However, she was barred from going home directly as her house in Purok 2, Barangay Dao is still on lockdown pending the release of the PCR test results of members of the household.
“Maghulat na lang sila nga mogawas result sa close contact then dili na ma-lockdown ila balay para mouli siya…mao majority decision sa family,” Pondoc said.
According to Pondoc, PCR test results of 192 contacts of the patient including her family and other people staying in her locked down house are still awaited.
The patient who has been admitted at the hospital for two weeks already recovered from pneumonia and other ailments even prior to the release of the first test result which was released on June 4 and indicated that she was infected with COVID-19.
Health authorities had noted that she was already set for discharge from the Ace Medical Center but this was cancelled after the positive test result was relayed by the Department of Health.
Tagbilaran City Mayor Baba Yap immediately after receiving the positive test result on June 4 placed the entire purok or sub-village where her house is located under lockdown.
He however gradually lessened the coverage of the lockdown until only the patient’s house was covered by the extreme quarantine measure.
So far, there have been four individuals in Bohol who tested positive for COVID-19 through PCR testing—three patients including the 65-year-old at the Ace Medical Center have recovered while one died.
The two others who recovered from the disease included a Chinese woman who traveled to Bohol in late January and an overseas Filipino worker who tested positive for the disease while under quarantine in the province in mid-May. (R. Tutas)