The Quezon City local government and the University of the Philippines Pandemic Response Team (UP-PRT) joined forces to strengthen the campaign against COVID-19.
The UP-PRT has committed to help the City Epidemiology and Surveillance Unit (CESU) in implementing end-to-end MedAlert COVID-19 testing and contact tracing platform, according to QC Public Information Office on Saturday, Oct. 2.
Dr. Rolly Cruz, Quezon City CESU head, said the data gathered from contact tracing platform and surveillance testing will help the city government decide on pandemic-related issues, including the implementation of granular lockdowns.
"Sa tulong ng UP-PRT, magkakaroon tayo ng mas malalimang pag-aaral at pagtaya na makatutulong sa pagpapasya ng siyudad kaugnay ng mga pagkilos, lalo na sa granular lockdowns (With the help of UP-PRT, we can get a deeper understanding and thorough assessment that can help the city in deciding on its next moves, especially when it comes to granular lockdowns),” Dr. Cruz said.
He added, the goal of the project is to make Quezon City a role model to other cities when it comes to pandemic responses.
Meanwhile, QC Mayor Joy Belmonte expressed her gratitude to the UP-PRT.
“During this pandemic, we need all the help we can get. So we thank the UP Pandemic Response Team for offering its assistance to the city government to boost our response and resiliency efforts,” Belmonte said. (Aaron Dioquino)