Malacañang is counting on government doctors and other health professionals to fulfill their sworn oath to promote public health amid calls for volunteers to coronavirus-hit areas.

Presidential spokesman Harry Roque made the statement after some rural government health professionals are reportedly reluctant to substitute their weary colleagues in Metro Manila and areas with high coronavirus cases.

"Kapag ikaw ay propesyunal alam mo na gagawin mo.  Bilang isang doktor, bilang pisang medical professional ang trabaho nila ay magsalba ng buhay (If you are a professional, you know what to do. As a doctor, as a medical professional, their job is to save lives)," Roque said during a televised press briefing Friday.

"Naniniwala ako na magiging tapat sa sinumpaang katungkulan ang ating mga frontliners (I believe that our frontliners will be true to their sworn duty)," he added.

As the country's cases of infections continued to increase, the health department has called for volunteers from the pool of doctors under the Doctors to the Barrios program to be deployed to areas with high COVID cases. Some rural health physicians however reportedly resisted any redeployment to  high-risk areas due to concerns about the possible spread of infection.

Health Secretary Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire however said she hopes fellow government doctors will heed the call to serve the public and ensure their health.

She said the health department continues to coordinate with the doctors on the proposed deployment, which she said, is "voluntary."

"Kami po ay mga doktor at kami po ay nagtatrabaho sa gobyerno, may mga sinumpaan po kaming tungkulin at isa po diyan ay itaguyod po namin ang kalusugan ng ating bayan (We are doctors working in government. We have a sworn duty including promoting the health of the nation)," she said in the same press briefing. 

"Sana po ay we are heeding that and giving that call to our doctors to the barrios na sana isipin po natin iyong paglilingkod natin hindi lang po para sa inyong lugar diyan kung hindi para sa buong bansa dahil kailangan po namin kayo ngayon (I hope we are heeding that and giving that call to our doctors to the barriors to think of the serving not only your areas but the entire country because we need you now)," she said.

Vergeire also gave an assurance that the government will not neglect or abandon the government health workers who will participate in the “rotation" of the workforce.  Safety measures will be implemented to ensure the health of the doctors and their patients, she said.

"If they are coming from an area na may community transmission, hindi naman namin sila agad ipagdu-duty o idi-deploy. Kailangan mayroon muna silang quarantine for how many days, they will be tested para po malaman natin at hindi rin sila makakapanghawa (If they are coming from an area with community transmission, we will not immediately deploy them. There must be a quarantine for how many days. They will be tested to make sue they are not infected)," she said.

She said rural doctors who will be deployed elsewhere will be replaced by other health workers to ensure uninterrupted delivery of service in their stead.