4 quarantined Pinoys from Hong Kong in stable condition —DOH

Four Filipinos who were quarantined because of a connecting flight they had in Hong Kong are in stable condition, the Department of Health (DOH)-Region 7 said.

According to a Tuesday report on 24 Oras by James Agustin, the four travelers are at the Eversley Childs Sanitarium and General Hospital, which was one of the quarantine facilities identified by DOH-Region 7.

“Walang symptoms na pinakita. Their vital signs are actually being taken every four hours and then if there are actually needs coming from the patient, binibigay namin,” said hospital administrative officer Joseph Dennis Adlawan.

“We made sure na ‘yung dadaanan ng mga pasyente, hindi siya ‘yung usual na dinaraanan ng pasyente,” he added.

On Sunday, the Palace ordered Filipinos and Philippine permanent resident visa holders who will enter the country from China, Hong Kong and Macau to undergo a 14-day quarantine as a precautionary measure against the 2019 novel coronavirus.

Cebu residents who flew back from the said countries but are not showing any symptoms of the virus will be required to undergo a home quarantine only.

Those living in the same household as people under home quarantine must also undergo “reverse isolation,” according to DOH 7 Regional Director Jaime Bernadas.

“Dapat sila naka-mask when they go home to their houses, and dapat ding… instructed ang mga kasama sa bahay to observe, at least, distance and the use of utensils and strict home isolation na wala silang travel outside their houses," he explained.

Local authorities and the Philippine National Police must also be notified of the address and identity of people under home quarantine for monitoring.

However, home quarantine is not an option for travelers who live with pregnant women, people with illnesses, children 10 years old and below, and elderly aged 60 years old and above.

As of Tuesday noon, the Philippines has two confirmed novel coronavirus cases while a total of 105 persons under investigation have been recorded. —Julia Mari Ornedo/LDF, GMA News