Compared to wealthier nations, the Philippines is "not bad" in handling the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, according to an official from the Philippine Genome Center, University of the Philippines.
“We should stop shooting ourselves. We are not bad versus South America, Europe, US, Canada,” said Dr. Cynthia P. Saloma, Executive Director of the Philippine Genome Center, University of the Philippines, during a webinar on “Understanding the Science of COVID-19 Testing.”
The webinar is a part of “COVID-19: Where We Are and Where We Want To Be,” series organized by the Department of Science and Technology-National Academy of Science and Technology (DOST-NAST).
“The number of COVID-19 cases in the country, compared with the cases of the wealthier nations attests to the government’s efforts in managing the pandemic,” Dr. Cynthia P. Saloma, Executive Director of the Philippine Genome Center, University of the Philippines, said during a webinar on “Understanding the Science of COVID-19 Testing,” Saloma edded.
Data provided by the DOST showed that COVID-19 cases in selected countries vary: in the US, there were 6.2 million cases with 567 deaths per million population; in the UK there were 337,168 cases and 611 deaths per million population; and Canada has 129,182 cases with 242 deaths per million population. On the other hand, the Philippines recorded 33 deaths per million population which is much lower.
In her presentation on “PCR-based tests for COVID-19, Saloma reported that there are 113 licensed testing laboratories in the country. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has released a total of 242 COVID-19 test kits broken down into the following: 85 PCR based, 88 rapid antibody, 59 immunoassay and 10 others. As of August 31, 2020 about 2.39 percent of the country’s population were already tested.
Diagnostic tests for COVID-19 are of two types: the first is the RT-PCR, which detects the presence of SARS-CoV-2 virus and uses respiratory specimen, and the second is the antibody-based tests, which detects the presence of antibodies against SARS-CoV-2, and uses serological samples or blood tests.
Some of the common errors in using RT-PCR are operator-related, reagent/kit related, and machine/software related. In handling COVID-19 test kits, Saloma reminded those administering it to systematically assess all possible sources of error, ensure that personnel are properly trained, religiously follow proper molecular biology techniques, store proper reagents and samples, properly maintain the equipment, and call a friend when in doubt.
According to the latest data from John Hopkins University, worldwide there are 28,313,733 COVID-19 cases and 912,242 deaths.
“This is a new challenge so we are all learning and refining methods as the pandemic unfolds,” Saloma said.