Tuesday, March 23, 2021

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Negros Oriental MR-OPV activity posts 80% achievement rate

Posted: 23 Mar 2021 02:09 AM PDT

NEGROS Oriental had an 80 percent accomplishment in its Measles, Rubella and Oral Polio Vaccine (MR-OPV) Supplemental Immunization Activity (SIA), which concluded recently.

Health authorities in Dumaguete City said it was a noteworthy feat, considering that at the onset of the activity, people were afraid to have their children vaccinated.

"I think we are the second province in the region (Central Visayas) that achieved its target," Assistant Provincial Health Officer Dr. Liland Estacion said in a virtual press briefing Monday afternoon, March 22.

The month-long second phase of the immunization in Negros Oriental in February was extended following a low turnout.

Most parents initially resisted or were reluctant to have their children immunized, believing the jabs were for the coronavirus disease (Covid-19).

The program ended on March 19, although the total number of children who received the vaccines is still being consolidated. The province has set a target of 142,855 children below five years old for the MR-OPV immunization.

"Trust is important to avoid diseases that can be prevented by a vaccine given for free by the government," Estacion said in the vernacular, thanking parents and families who trust them.

Dr. Socrates Villamor, Department of Health-Negros Oriental chief, said in an interview on Tuesday, March 23, that this year's accomplishment rate is remarkable as previous campaigns gained just about 60 percent because of the Dengvaxia scare.

"This is considered a high accomplishment even if we failed to reach the national government target of 95 percent," he said.

Villamor is hoping that Negros Oriental will remain a measles-free province as it has been in 2020. (PNA)

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Geothermal host-village in Negros Oriental gets new dump truck

Posted: 23 Mar 2021 02:08 AM PDT

THE village of Puhagan in Valencia, Negros Oriental has received a brand new truck worth P3.4 million as part of the Energy Regulations 1-94 of the Department of Energy (DOE), a program that compensates communities hosting power generating facilities and energy resources.

Puhagan is among three villages, including Caidiocan and Malaunay, that host the geothermal power plants of the Energy Development Corporation (EDC).

A ceremonial turnover was held Sunday, March 21, in Puhagan for the dump truck, which the village requested for in an annual work plan submitted by its officials last year, said Norreen Bautista, head of EDC's Corporate Social Responsibility in Negros Island.

Bautista said that under the DOE's Energy Regulations 1-94, a power generating company like EDC is mandated to provide an amount of one centavo per kilowatt hour of generated power, which is deposited with DOE.

"Every year, each host community can actually avail of that provided they propose an annual work plan and depending on the available budget they can request any project they think is needed in their community," she said.

It is not a royalty fee but a community fund under the DOE and is only applicable for geothermal projects, Bautista noted.

The dump truck is intended for waste disposal in Barangay Puhagan, she added.

According to Bautista, aside from the three host villages, the municipality of Valencia and the province of Negros Oriental are also qualified under this particular DOE program.

Neighboring towns can also apply for the same provided they can get an endorsement from the host town or host province.

"It is just a matter of creativity and that is why we are trying to tell them that you should avail kay saying man gud dili pod magamit (as it is such a waste if not utilized) when neighboring barangays or towns can tap that fund," Bautista said.

EDC, the country's premier geothermal power firm, has a 222.5-megawatt total capacity generated by its power plants in Valencia. (PNA)

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Negros Oriental logs more Covid-19 recoveries

Posted: 23 Mar 2021 02:07 AM PDT

THE province of Negros Oriental has logged more recoveries from the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) and fewer new confirmed cases than the previous weeks, resulting in a drop in the number of active cases.

Assistant Provincial Health Officer Dr. Liland Estacion, health committee chair of the province's Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID), said in a virtual press briefing Monday afternoon, March 22, they are hoping that this trend will continue as she reiterated her appeal for public adherence to the minimum safe and healthy protocols.

Estacion said that in the past three days, from March 18 to 21, her office received a total of 275 swab test results.

Of the number, 263 were negative (with 19 recoveries), nine new positive infections and three repeat swab positive cases, she said.

The 19 recoveries are from Guihulngan City (eight); Dumaguete City (four); Basay (two); Bacong, Bindoy, Sibulan, Zamboanguita, and Bayawan City (one each).

The new positive cases are from Sibulan (four), Dumaguete City (three), and La Libertad and Sta. Catalina (one each).

One new death was also reported, a 79-year-old female with comorbidities who died on Sunday at a private hospital in Dumaguete City, Estacion said.

As of March 22, the total caseload of Negros Oriental is 1,874, broken down into 1,739 recoveries, 79 active positive cases, and 56 mortalities.

In recent weeks, the total active positive cases in the province slowly declined from a high of more than 200 infections early this year.

Asked whether the province is headed toward flattening the curve in Covid-19 cases, she said they can only hope for the best.

"I hope and pray if everybody will cooperate this will come true. As of the moment, our hospitals are not overwhelmed because of the lesser number of Covid-19 cases but I cannot say that we can sustain this," she said in mixed Cebuano and English.

Meanwhile, Estacion said 2,614 frontliners have already been vaccinated against Covid-19 while inoculation continues in the private and government hospitals in this capital and in other parts of the province.

Also, the province received on Sunday, March 21, its third shipment of vaccines from the Department of Health-Central Luzon in Cebu City, consisting of an estimated 3,600 doses of CoronaVac.

These are now being distributed to the Rural Health Units in the different towns and cities and the administration of these vaccines will start on Tuesday, Estacion said. (PNA)

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