Several Southeast Asian countries have implemented draconian measures in light of the CoVID-19 situation in the region, as new cases continue to hike following wider coronavirus testing.
Philippines Passes 500 Cases
The Philippine Department of Health (DOH) confirmed on Tuesday that the country now has 501 CoVID-19 cases. The death toll remains at 33 and the number of recoveries reached 19, ABS-CBN News reported.
The DOH is expected to hold a regular briefing later in the day. Experts said the numbers may still spike as more people wait for their test results to come out.
Thousands of Filipino Seafarers Expected to be Repatriated
Meanwhile, around 10,000 Filipino workers at sea are expected to call for repatriation after multiple cruise ships halted operations amid the ongoing coronavirus outbreak.
In line with the potential homecoming of Filipino seafarers, Magsaysay Maritime Corp.'s chairman Marlon Rono revealed that the company will charter flights for seamen and other workers who lost their jobs due to the crisis.
Rono said the repatriation process has started and in the coming days, many seafarers will come home. He clarified that if seafarers planning to go home display CoVID-19 symptoms, doctors in cruise ships will take care of them.
Thai Hospitals Use Robots to Monitor Patients
In Thailand, "ninja robots" are being used by some hospitals to help frontliners fight the battle against CoVID-19. Aside from taking patient temperatures, the wheeled robots are also considered very helpful in reducing the risk of exposure among health providers.
According to Business Insider, the team developing the robots is also hard at work in integrating algorithms that will make the ninja robots become more useful in other aspects of healthcare such as cleaning and delivering food to coronavirus patients.
The said robots were originally created to monitor patients who experienced stroke but Chulalongkorn University students in the engineering department modified them for CoVID-19-related purposes.
Indonesia Secures Anti-Malaria Drug for CoVID-19 Treatment
Indonesian President Joko Widodo said on Monday that the country now has ample supply of anti-malaria drug choloroquine. The said drug is being tested as a potential treatment for coronavirus patients, the Straits Times reported.
According to Widodo, state-owned pharmaceutical PT Kimia Farma produced the anti-malaria drug as countries around Southeast Asia scramble to come up with potential forms for treatment for CoVID-19 sufferers.
Chloroquine is still undergoing clinical trials at the World Health Organization (WHO) and researchers in the United States are also testing the drug to determine whether it is effective in treating CoVID-19 symptoms.
Malaysia Moves to Control Eight Percent CoVID-19 Rebels
The Malaysian government said on Tuesday that it will focus on eight percent of the country's population that still defy the Movement Control Order (MCO) that started seven days ago, Bernama reported.
The focus on society rebels amid the CoVID-19 crisis came as Malaysia seeks 100 percent compliance in hopes of containing the virus and preventing further infections.
Malaysia has at least 1,518 confirmed coronavirus cases and 14 deaths from the highly-infectious disease. The country's biggest cluster came from a tabligh assembly attended by around 10,000 people from around the world.
Singapore Says 9 in 10 Cases Didn't Show CoVID-19 Symptoms
The Singaporean Health Ministry said on Monday that nine in 10 imported coronavirus cases in the city-state during the Wednesday to Friday period last week did not show any symptoms when they were assessed at checkpoints.
The ministry noted that due to asymptomatic patients, there were delays in detecting people from outside Singapore who were already infected with the CoVID-19 strain.
The new report raises further questions on the full number of people worldwide who may already be carriers but are still unaware that they contracted the disease.
Singapore recorded a total of 509 confirmed coronavirus cases as of Monday. Two people have died, and 15 are in critical care.
Vietnam's New Cases Include Returnees from Cambodia
Two new imported cases have been added to Vietnam's coronavirus tally, with both cases having traveled to Cambodia earlier this month.
Patient 117 is a 30-year-old man who traveled to Cambodia earlier this month and started experiencing symptoms on March 16. Patient 118 is a 23-year-old woman who has existing chronic bronchitis, VN Express reported.
Vietnam now has a total of 118 confirmed CoVID-19 cases and 101 of the said cases are still active.
