Senator Dick Gordon, chairman and CEO of the Philippine Red Cross, has authorized the delivery of consumables to the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM) to ensure that the health research facility will continue testing for the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) without delay.
“The more people are tested quickly, the sooner we would be able to ensure victory over COVID-19. If we unmask the virus hiding inside the people who are infected, we would be able to isolate them and cure them, thus, preventing the further spread of the virus. So, we can’t have the RITM’s operations hampered due to the lack of the necessary NATCH CS items,” Gordon pointed out.
“We can’t have the RITM’s operations hampered due to the lack of the necessary NATCH CS items.”
Amid the need to test more people in the shortest time possible, the RITM came close to losing a few days of testing time recently because the delivery of the consumable items needed for the procedure was delayed due to lack of available flights.
The veteran legislator immediately ordered the delivery to the RITM after Vince Dizon, Deputy Chief Implementer, National Task Force of COVID-19, sought his help in behalf of the research facility.
“The RITM supposed to receive over the weekend NATCH CS items for its COVID-testing equipment. However, the delivery was delayed due to the lack of an available flight from China to Manila… For the meantime, in the exigency of service and given the urgency of the matter, may we respectfully request from the Philippine Red Cross the following NATCH CS items be provided to the RITM,” Dizon said in a letter dated June 15.
The PRC provided the following items: 5 mL Sterile tube (336 pieces); 96 Deep well plate (168 pieces); 1000 ul tips (336 racks); and 0.2mL 8-tube PCR strips with flat optical cap (336 bags).
“The items will be replaced upon receipt of the delivery from China.”
The task force official said the items will be replaced upon receipt of the delivery from China, for which, the Department of National Defense assured, a flight has already been arranged.
Dizon also thanked Gordon and the PRC for continuing to support the country’s fight against the coronavirus disease.
The PRC also came to the RITM’s assistance when it had to trim down its operations in April after several members of its staff tested positive for COVID. The RITM sent around 1,000 specimens for testing to the PRC.