DOH says having to explain OCTA on COVID-19 data an added burden

The pronouncements of OCTA Research as regards the numbers pertaining to the COVID-19 pandemic has added to the tasks of the Department of Health, Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said on Monday.

Vergeire told a House committee that the DOH needed to clarify and explain projections made by the academics of OCTA.

"Actually, it has added to our task, 'yun pong kailangan naming ipaliwanag din 'yung inilalabas nilang reports," Vergeire said when asked if OCTA "at times," confused the public with its COVID-19 projections.

Vergeire said that she was friends with OCTA fellows Dr. Ranjit Rye and Fr. Nick Austriaco but added that in the government the DOH was "battling not just the actual cases... we're also battling infodemic."

"Ang mga tao po ngayon gulong gulo na sa lahat ng inilalabas natin. It adds on the burden doon sa trabaho ng gobyerno kapag mayroon pong nakakapag-preempt katulad noong announcement na may surge," Vergeire said.

"We have our metrics to use. When that announcement was done, our ICU utilization and our healthcare utilization was just 50%," she added.

Vergeire said the health system was still able to handle the critical cases at the time of OCTA's announcemet of a surge.

"And unfortunately, the announcement was done so the clamor was there," Vergeire said.

To address this issue and avoid public confusion, the DOH and the OCTA Research both said they are willing to work together and figure out how to "align" their figures and other information about the health crisis.

OCTA Research is an independent group that gives projections and warnings about the COVID-19 pandemic.

It often gives suggestions on the quarantine classifications that will be implemented by the national government amid the pandemic.

Lawmakers had called for an investigation about OCTA Research to determine the credentials and background of the group. -NB, GMA News