DOH: Case doubling time of COVID-19 in Philippines longer, 'slightly better' in September

The case doubling time or the measure of how fast COVID-19 spreads in the Philippines has slightly improved this month compared to August, the Department of Health (DOH) said Friday.

In a file sent to reporters, the DOH said the case doubling time as of September 17 is 10.84 days, "slightly better" compared to the record on August 17 which is 9.52 days.

The longer the doubling time, the better, according to the DOH.

A similar positive change is also observed in the mortality doubling time which determines how fast the number of deaths are increasing in the country.

"As of September 17, 2020, the Mortality Doubling Time is 15.54 which is better compared to the MDT of 13.96 days last August 17," the DOH said.

Further, the DOH said the national critical utilization rate—the use of mechanical ventilators, ICU beds, and isolation bed—has gone down to 45 percent as of September 17. This is slightly lower than the 49 percent recorded a month ago.

On the other hand, the utilization rate of temporary treatment and monitoring facilities (TTMF) is 38 percent as of September 17, five percent higher than last month's record.

This is attributable to factors such as the increasing number of  mild and asymptomatic cases being brought to TTMF, as well as increasing referrals from Level 1 to 3 hospitals, the DOH  said.

Though the numbers are improving, the DOH said the fight against COVID-19 is not yet over and that there should be no room for complacency.

As of September 18, the Philippines has nearly 280,000 COVID-19 cases, 65,906 of whom are active ones. More than 208,700 have recovered while the death toll is 4,830.—AOL, GMA News