Answer: As Filipinos wonder when the pandemic will end, an alliance of the nation’s health workers provides insights into something more crucial – how to continue living with a lingering virus
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Six months since the novel coronavirus spread across the world, the Philippines has become one of the hardest hit countries in Southeast Asia. A virus a thousand times smaller than a dust mite has plunged a burgeoning economy into technical recession, exposed the dire effects of a neglected health system, and taken the lives of at least 3,000 Filipinos.
Despite implementing one of the world’s longest lockdowns, the Philippines has recorded an upsurge of positive cases from 140 cases in mid-March (when strict social distancing measures were first put in place) to over 213,000 cases near the end of August.
Only 8 months spell the difference between life as many Filipinos knew it, to one now centered on protecting against an infectious disease. Early inaction coupled with a lack of quick, decisive leadership cost the country precious lead time that could have cushioned the blow of the health crisis. A patchwork of responses allowed the virus to insert itself into communities still struggling to contain its spread.
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