The Davao City Covid-19 Task Force has warned unvaccinated Dabawenyos that they are still at risk of getting the Sars-CoV-2, the virus that causes coronavirus disease, despite the low positivity rate in Davao City.
During the Covid-19 Alert Program on the Davao City Disaster Radio (DCDR) Wednesday Davao City Covid-19 Task Force Spokesperson Dr. Michelle Schlosser said that vaccination remains the primary way to get an additional layer of protection against the coronavirus.
She said that Covid-19 persists in the city in small numbers, underscoring the days when the city logged zero cases of Covid-19 are inconsistent.
“It is a good thing nga naa ta below the acceptable positivity rate but then again bisan gamay lang na siya, the fact nga naa ta’y cases everyday means naa lang gihapon ta’y kalaban. This is the reason why strong gihapon ang atoang call sa pag-wear og face mask pag-avoid og high risk behaviors like going out to social gatherings (It is a good thing that we are below the acceptable positivity rate but even if it is small, the fact that we still have cases means that we still have an enemy. That is the reason why we remain strong in our call on the wearing of face masks and avoiding high-risk behaviors like going out for social gatherings),” Schlosser said.
She added that vaccination and wearing of face mask must go hand in hand.
“Dili pwede na mag-wear lang ta og facemask kay wala man ta kita sa atoang kalaban. So, we have to have that added layer of protection from the severity of the disease which is through a vaccine (Wearing of facemask is not enough because our enemy is unseen so we need an added layer of protection from the severity of the disease which is through a vaccine),” she said.
She added that based on the data from April 10 to April 16, the city recorded the death of one unvaccinated person due to a severe case of Covid-19.
“All we need to do is to have our vaccine and protected nata sa severity of the disease. Mao lang gyud na atoang gihangyo sa katawhan na kung pwede lang ma-prevent ang death, prevent it, and have your vaccine now (All we have to do is to have our vaccine for protection from the severity of the disease. This is what we have been urging the public for, if you can prevent death, prevent it and have your vaccine now),” Schlosser said.
She added that people in one community must protect each other from further transmission.
Based on the data from the Covid-19 Vaccination Cluster, the city has administered 1,324,280 first doses, and 1,302,405 second doses of the vaccines which are 86.50 percent and 85.07 percent, respectively, of the 1,531,004 or 80.67 percent of the city’s total population.
Davao City Vaccination Cluster Head Dr. Josephine Villafuerte in a separate interview on DCDR Wednesday said that while the numbers of vaccinated individuals are high, they are still pushing to achieve the 80.67 percent which is the new target from the 80 percent initial target.
This is to help achieve the national goal of 89 million to 90 million Filipinos fully vaccinated, she said.
She reported that the majority of the remaining unvaccinated individuals from the 80.67 percent target are senior citizens and children 5 years and above. Senior citizens are part of the vulnerable population and the children 5 years old to 17 years old are a priority for vaccination.
To pursue an even larger vaccination coverage, mall vaccination sites for five to 11 years old and 12 years old and above population groups have been extended on Saturdays starting this week.
Villafuerte added that they are also preparing for the rollout soon of the 5-11 years old mobile vaccination.
The schedule for vaccination and their respective sites can be accessed through the City Government of Davao Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/davaocitygov. CIO
