MANILA - The visiting team of Chinese medical experts on Friday lauded the professionalism of Philippine health workers in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic despite what they described as a shortage of manpower, personal protective equipment and “sub-par conditions.”

“The medical staff in the Philippines are very professional. They are able to follow the standard protocol in the diagnosis and treatment of COVID-19 and the results of the treatment are good with a high success rate,” the group said with the help of an English translator during a virtual forum posted on Facebook by CCTV Asia Pacific.

They commended the dedication of Philippine medical staff in the face of the outbreak.

• Chinese medical team visits DOH

“We are deeply moved by their perseverance and active work of the medical staff despite the shortage of manpower, PPEs, and the sub-par work conditions," they said.

In the said forum, the Chinese medical experts also noted the shortage in medical staff, the problem of infection among health workers in some hospitals in the Philippines, and the need to improve detection capacity.

“At the present, there is still a shortage of beds and the detection capacity is to be further improved. There are insufficient medical staff and medical materials and there is also a problem with medical workers getting infected in some hospitals,” they said.

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The medical experts shared the importance of quick detection for the early isolation of patients, early reporting and early treatment, strengthening the management and training of medical staff, avoiding cross-infection in hospitals, and promoting science and knowledge to the public to reduce the infection rate.

The team expressed optimism that the Philippines will be able to beat the pandemic.

“We believe that with the efforts of the Philippine government, DOH and the cooperation of the Filipino, the Philippines will surely achieve a victory in fighting this pandemic.”

• Chinese medical team shares COVID-19 treatment plan with PH doctors

According to the Chinese Embassy, the team of 12 Chinese medical experts has visited more than 10 frontline medical agencies, such as the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine, Lung Center of the Philippines and Chinese General Hospital and Medical Center and shared with public health officials and professionals their experience and practice on COVID-19 prevention and control, diagnosis and treatment and tips to their Philippine counterparts and to the public.

As of Friday, the DOH recorded 5,878 confirmed cases of COVID-19, including 387 deaths and 487 recoveries.

The infection began at a public market that sold wild animals as delicacies in the Chinese city of Wuhan in late December. It began spreading globally in January and has since infected over 2.1 million people, with more than 145,000 deaths.

• COVID-19 recoveries up by 52; total cases now at 5,878