Volunteers needed as contact tracers

CEBU, Philippines — The Police Regional Office (PRO)-7 has already formed 79 teams of contact tracers and is still calling for more individuals to join.

PRO-7 Director Albert Ignatius Ferro said they still need more volunteers for the contact tracing teams.

“As what I saw last night, 909 pa lang from different barangays.  So, we have to work more and the added personnel will help us come up with the additional output para atong ma-polish ang atong contact tracing," Ferro said in a press briefing yesterday.

Ferro added they are targeting to form 130 teams of contact tracers.

At present, they are awaiting for the additional augmentation from the Bureau of Fire Protection to be trained as an additional component of the teams.

“When we conduct contact tracing, naay composition - one is a medical or health official, then policeman, then a swabber, then an analyst.  So, I suggest that we house those contact tracers for seven days or 14 days, to be able for the next contact tracers to rest for a while, avoid the cross-contamination for those that have contact tracing,” said Ferro.

This system would also prevent the contact tracers the possible transmission to their family, if ever they will be infected during their contact tracing.

Among the methods that contact tracers applied was the house-to-house contact tracing.

Among those that were asked during the contact tracing is the extent of the contact to the COVID-19 positive patients to be able to determine if they will have to undergo swab testing.

If found to have close proximity to the patient, the swabber in the team will immediately conduct the testing.  GAN (FREEMAN)