Capitol to include PUMs in swabbing

CEBU, Philippines — Persons under monitoring (PUM) will be included in the "more aggressive" COVID-19 testing that the Cebu Provincial Government will undertake.

Governor Gwendolyn Garcia, in her press conference yesterday, has announced that apart from patients manifesting Severe Acute Respiratory Infection (SARI) and Influenza-Like Illness (ILI), PUMs in the province’s component cities and municipalities will now be swabbed for COVID-19.

This, she said, was agreed upon with the Department of Health (DOH)-7 and the province's municipal and city health officers during their meeting last April 29.

"Mas agresibo na usab ang atong swabbing. Ipuno nako, ato usab na-agreehan with DOH, nagkasabot ta na dili lang ta kutob sa ILI ug SARI nga i-swab. Hasta sad ang atong persons under monitoring," she said.

As of April 29, the province of Cebu has a total of 5,137 PUMs. A number of which are residents who have returned to the province from Cebu City.

As for the massive targeted testing to be conducted on sample populations per component city and municipality under the province, Garcia said that Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) tests will be used instead of the initially planned Rapid Diagnostic Tests (RDT).

She explained that the use of PCR tests would be more efficient since RDTs are less accurate.

She added that results for RDTs require confirmation through a PCR test.

"But still, kailangan pa ni i-confirm ug PCR, katong swabbing gyud. So, we decided, moderitso na lang ta pagpa-swab," she said.

"Kaning swabbing, mao na ni atong direction. And this is with the approval of the Department of Health," she added.

The massive targeted testing was devised to give the Cebu Provincial Government an idea of the readiness of each town and city to re-open certain businesses upon the end of the enhanced community quarantine.

Swabs will be taken from sample populations. Results and trends will then be analyzed by a group of doctors from the University of the Philippines.  GAN (FREEMAN)