“Longest Confined Patient To Be Released”

May 9, 2020 Metro BLISTT

BAGUIO CITY (May 8, 2020) — Another coronavirus (Covid19) patient was discharged from the Baguio General Hospital and Medical Center on Friday, even as the 59-year old expat from New York, United States will be discharged on Saturday, ending his 52-day confinement.
The 22-year old female nurse from Tawang, La Trinidad, Benguet was released Friday bringing the total of recoveries to 17 as she noted the high probability of recovery in the city that stands now at 56.67 percent, Baguio Public Information Officer Aileen Paguio-Refuerzo said.
The patient, who was admitted on April 23, was placed under Baguio statistics because she is an employee of the BGHMC. She was also the youngest admitted patient breaking the 23 year-old male Manila resident.
The youngest COVID19 patient in Baguio is a week old baby, who was admitted when she was eight days old. With the release of 59 year old expat on Saturday, the city will chart a 60 percent recovery yet and with the looks of it, Baguio City Mayor Benjamin Magalong said, the remaining 12 could be later be given a clean bill of health as they are all in stable condition.
Local health officials will finally heave a big a sigh of relief with the discharge of the 59 year old patient, the longest staying Covid-19 patient who was admitted on March 18, when the first wave of diagnosis was released.
City Epidemiology and Surveillance Unit head Dr. Donabelle Panes noted that Baguio Covid-19 patients usually stay at the hospital for 14 days with the expat as the only exception.
“Low Mortality in Baguio” While Panes reported a case fatality rate is at a very low 3.33 percent or one death out of the 30 patients, referring to the 55-year old female government employee who died late March.
“This means that when one contracts the virus, she or he has a three percent chance of dying,” Panes surmised. Panes presented the epidemiology of the city’s Covid cases done jointly by the CHSO and the University of the Philippines on Monday to establish the distribution and determinants of the cases Baguio.
As per the report, the patients’ distribution as per case classification of the Department of Health is confirmed cases — 3 percent; suspect cases — 89 percent; probable — 8 percent.
Panes said the average age is 46 years old with an age range of eight days old (on her admission) to 77 years old.
The age group of the Covid-19 cases, Panes noted, are of working age or within the age groups of 30-40 and 40-50 years old and that there were more female patients than male.
She said the clinical classifications of the cases, 40 percent had mild symptoms, 37 percent moderate symptoms, 20 percent asymptomatic and 3 percent death.
On the presence of co-morbid conditions, 63 percent of the patients had pre-existing conditions and 37 percent had none. Four had diabetes, three had hypertension and nine had other one health problem each.
Most of the patients were exposed while at a health facility or 43, 37 percent had history of travel in National Capital Region, 10 percent had traveled abroad and 10 percent had no travel history.
Such data will help guide them in the adoption and fine tuning of the control measures being implemented to combat the disease.
Artemio A. Dumlao/ABN