MANILA, Philippines — Majority of Filipinos are still following basic health protocols against COVID-19 but compliance with rules fell in Visayas and Mindanao, a Social Weather Stations survey showed.
The survey, conducted from April 28 to May 2, found that 75% of respondents still wear face masks, 67% wash their hands several times a day, 58% keep physical distance from other people outside their homes, and 53% use face shields.
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SWS said adherence to protocols set by the government “hardly changed” from the results of the survey done in September 2020.
Face mask rule followed most in Metro Manila, Luzon
The polling firm noted that while compliance rose in Metro Manila and Balance Luzon for some practices, it fell in Visayas and in Mindanao.
Adherence to face mask wearing was highest in Balance Luzon (80%), followed by Metro Manila (78%), Visayas (72%), and Mindanao (64%).
“They declined in the Visayas (down by 14 points from 86%) and Mindanao (down by 14 points from 78%),” SWS said.
The proportion of those who always practice frequent hand washing decreased in Mindanao to 52% from 69% in September and Visayas to 69% from 75%. Metro Manila was at the top in terms of compliance with handwashing rule at 76% and Balance Luzon at 71%.
Obedience to physical distancing rule also fell in Mindanao to 42% from 60% and Visayas to 52% from 66%. Meanwhile, the percentage of those who always keep physical distance with others rose in Balance Luzon to 66% from 56% and stayed at 65% in the capital region.
SWS said the proportion of those who always use face shields “declined sharply” in Visayas to 35% from 66% and Mindanao to 43% from 58%. Adherence to this protocol was highest in Metro Manila at 66% and Balance Luzon at 62%.
Cases going down in NCR
Last week, the Department of Health said the number of COVID-19 cases in Metro Manila was going down, while parts of Luzon and Mindanao experienced spikes in infections.
The agency also said it would be wrong to call Davao City the new COVID-19 “epicenter” in the country despite the increasing number of cases there.
SWS also said compliance with face mask wearing and frequent hand washing was lower among those not worried about getting COVID-19.
The survey was conducted through face-to-face interviews of 1,200 adults. The sampling error margins are ±3% for national percentages and ±6% for Balance Luzon, Metro Manila, the Visayas and Mindanao.
To date, the country has recorded 1.29 million COVID-19 cases, of which 4.4% were active.