A 92-YEAR-OLD grandmother from Pandacan, Manila is the oldest COVID-19 survivor that had been handled in a hospital being run by the city government, toppling the record-holder, an 80-year-old who was confined for 44 days.
An ecstatic Mayor Isko Moreno announced this over the weekend, as he lauded the doctors, nurses and staff of the Sta. Ana Hospital and its director Dr. Grace Padilla for having successfully saved patient Amanda Morales, including her family members who also got infected by the coronavirus.
Moreno noted that Morales even had pre-conditions but that with ample care and better health facilities, she was able to pull through after 12 days of continued treatment in the said hospital.
“Congrats lola ko, ingat ka na next time ha. I’m happy for you. Salamat sa Diyos. Hold on ka lang, after eight years may P100,000 ka naman sa city government. Sana mabisita ko kayo someday,” Moreno said.
The mayor said the total recovery of Morales serves as an inspiration for him and the rest of the officialdom of the Manila city government to continue exploring ways to save lives and further improving the city’s health care system and facilitites as well as the support being given to medical frontliners.
“Every Manileno saved is one step closer to success. Ample care and better health care facilities are the only ways so far. Di ba tayo kinaaawaan ng Diyos niyan? This should be an inspiration for us. Me failure, me success… all is part of the challenge and there will be more uncertaintities in this pandemic,” the mayor said.
Moreno noted that based on information he gathered, Morales had not been going out of the house since she belongs to the high-risk age group, being a senior citizen.
However, her children and grandchildren go out and this was how she got infected with the coronavirus.
In this light, the mayor reiterated his oft-repeated appeal for those who are allowed to go out under the quarantine rules to only do so when highly necessary and that when they do, to take all the needed precautionary measures to ensure they do not expose their loved ones to the virus.
