Protecting kids from Delta Variant

CITY HALL BEAT

Aileen P. Refuerzo 

BAGUIO CITY -- Mayor Benjamin Magalong on Aug. 3 urged safeguarding of children from the more harmful Delta variant after an increase in severe cases of Covid-19 among younger population was noted in other parts of the country.
    Last July 30, the city had restricted children aged 15 years old and below from entering and enclosed places and limited them to open spaces like parks and al fresco or open air dining pursuant to Executive Order No. 89 series of 2021 issued by the mayor.
    But parents should be more cautious and if possible should limit occasions of letting their children go out of their homes only to essential purposes.
    “It is better to err on the side of caution than risk them from getting sick especially that they are still unvaccinated,” the mayor said.
    The UP Philippine General Hospital in Manila on August 3 reported that its Covid-19 intensive care units for children had reached full capacity and that more kids with Covid-19 are being treated in the hospital.
    The mayor said data from the US and Europe also showed that more children and adolescents are being infected by the Delta variant with peculiar symptoms
     “Kakaiba ang symptoms nito.  Akala mo very mild pero mas matindi ang tama sa inyong organs.  Even the doctors mention that very light ang symptoms nito pero ang tama sa lungs is more severe,” the mayor said.
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    Wearing of double face masks and reducing manpower capacity in workplaces was recommended by Mayor Magalong amid threat of Delta variant.
    “Wear double masks and reduce the number of workers by 50 percent at any given time by doing shifting, work-from-home or any other scheme that will work best for the establishment,” the mayor suggested.
    He said these are necessary precautionary measures to protect the city’s workforce from the more virulent effects of the new variant.
    Medical experts had warned that unlike the original Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) strain, the Delta variant has the capacity to infect a person in seconds and to linger more in the air.  Its infectivity rate was even likened to that of chicken pox.
Positive patients are also said to become highly contagious in a shorter time and even if they are asymptomatic because the Delta can cause high amount of viral load.
    Also unlike the original strain and most of the other variants, its initial symptoms are mild but once it gets into a person’s system, it can attack the organs with severity so that an infected person will instantly experience difficulty in breathing.
    The mayor also urged government and private establishments to intensify implementation of the public and social health protocols like the observance of physical distancing among their employees and customers, regular disinfection, ensuring proper ventilation and avoiding crowding and lingering in confined spaces and eating in groups.
    He said the city is also doing its best to expedite the vaccination of the workers by requesting for more vaccines for those belonging to the A4 category.
    Sectoral vaccination sites had been set for working groups that experienced clustering of cases recently.