SAN JOSE DE BUENAVISTA, Antique – The Diocese of Antique is calling for prayers for the healing of 27 seminarians of the St. Peter’s Seminary in this town and two priests infected with the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
San Jose de Buenavista Municipal Health Officer, Dr. Melba Billones, said 31 seminarians were subjected to swab tests from April 11 to 13 and as of Thursday, 27 were confirmed positive of COVID-19.
Billones said the seminarians were subjected to a reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test after a priest assigned at the seminary tested positive for the disease on April 7.
“We have difficulty contact tracing the index case,” she said.
Both the index case and the infected priest are in stable condition in a hospital in Iloilo City and would be discharged anytime soon.
“The COVID-19-positive seminarians are asymptomatic, with some others manifesting mild symptoms,” she added.
Billones noted that the patients are being managed by a private physician and the Antique Medical Center, a Catholic-owned hospital in San Jose de Buenavista.
Meanwhile, Bishop Marvyn A. Maceda of the Diocese of Antique said in a statement on Wednesday that the infected seminarians have been transferred to the St. John Mary Vianney Center just within the compound of the seminary for isolation.
“We join you in prayers for the fast recovery of our seminarians. We also continue to pray for the recovery of those who are afflicted with (the) COVID-19 virus and for the well-being of our health front-liners,” the statement added. Philippine News Agency
