COVID-19 patients quarantined in Cagayan de Oro City’s Temporary Treatment Management Facility (TTMF) will undergo repeated tests until their results turn out negative, Mayor Oscar Moreno and City Health Office (CHO) officials said Tuesday noon, July 28.

Mayor Moreno and CHO resident epidemiologist Dr. Teodulfo Joselito Retuya gave this assurance during Tuesday noon’s press briefing as they also reminded recovered patients to avoid being infected again by strictly observing minimum health safety standards. These protocols include staying at home, handwashing, wearing of face masks, and physical distancing when going outside.

“For those families whose loved ones are quarantined in the city’s isolation units or TTMF, once they return home and they isolate themselves, there is zero chance of them infecting others,” Mayor Moreno said.

“That’s the city’s guarantee because they underwent testing on the fifth, sixth or seventh day of their quarantine and if they test negative, then they can return to their families and finish the second week of their quarantine at home.”

Returning Kagay-anons and city residents who are quarantined in the city’s isolation units or at the TTMF if they test positive for COVID-19 undergo reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) testing which is 95% accurate and more reliable than Rapid Diagnostic Testing (RDT).

Dr. Retuya said as much but reminded recovered patients not to take chances by indiscriminately going outside without wearing their face masks and risking exposure to COVID-19 through close contacts in crowded places and closed spaces with poor ventilation.

“Recovered patients should finish the second week of their quarantine to allow their bodies to generate enough antibodies to fight COVID-19,” Dr. Retuya said. “But just because they recovered and tested negative doesn’t mean they cannot be infected anymore. So like everyone else they should stay at home and go out only when needed and to wear face masks and observing physical distancing.”

Mayor Moreno said: “It would be more problematic if these patients don’t undergo testing before they are discharged and sent back to their homes. We are being conservative by requiring additional tests to make sure there are no more remnants of COVID-19 inside the patient before he or she returns to his or her family.”