Early COVID-19 Pandemic Response in Western Visayas, Philippines

The COVID-19 pandemic has burdened the public health system in the Philippines since January 2020. In Western Visayas (Region 6), Philippines, issues have been raised on the limitations of the governments response on testing, contact tracing, and augmentation of healthcare facilities. Using data from the Western Visayas - Regional Epidemiologic Surveillance Unit (WV - RESU) from March 20 - June 20, 2020, the following observations were made: 1) Of the 6 provinces, Iloilo had the highest % tests done per capita which may be linked to the presence of the only regional COVID-19 testing facility in the province at that time, 2) There were delays in the overall processing times for specimens from Antique and Negros Occidental which may be linked to transport logistics and/or laboratory processing, 3) Contact tracing and testing were de-linked - tracing was adequate (3,420/3,503, 97.63%), but less than 50% of these (1,668/3,420) were tested, 4) Hospital and quarantine facility capacities were still adequate, but their utilization rates needed to be monitored continuously for further augmentation, if needed. This data shows the challenges of establishing a pandemic response in one of the regions in the Philippines.