In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic’s disruptive wave, the nation finds itself standing at a juncture marked by both reflection and transition. Four years have elapsed since the butterfly effect of the virus set in motion a global upheaval, reshaping our lives in profound ways. As we tentatively navigate a post-pandemic environment, one cohort emerges from the chaos as unsung heroes of the medical frontline: the local government units’ contact tracers.
Amid the chaos of varying community quarantine levels, these individuals stood as sentinels, braving the storm to track and contain the virus’ spread. Their tireless efforts became a cornerstone of our collective response to the crisis. Now, as we cast a retrospective gaze upon those tumultuous days, it becomes imperative to explore the narrative of these contact tracers—their trials, triumphs, and the trajectories that have shaped their lives since.
Challenges of quarantine
Dr. Maria Lourdes Eleria, the Quezon City Health Department assistant officer in charge, oversaw COVID-19 efforts at the height of the pandemic. She was assigned to a task force for the roll-out of vaccines in the city, a job she described to be “toxic” because of its demanding 12-hour work shift. Comparing her workload then and now, she notes the ease of providing service during a lack of a state of health emergency: “Parang four hours [per day] lang ata ang tulog ko [noong pandemic].”
(I think I only slept for four hours per day during the pandemic.)
Eleria also recalls having to cater to both the 3.2 million residents and employees that work in Quezon City (QC). “‘Yung aming night population is different from our day population,” she describes. While her public health department normally catered to the poor and middle-class citizens, they also had to care for the upper class to stem the spread of the disease.
In other cities, contact tracing became a struggle to maintain amid the steep rise in the number of cases and the removal of funds for the efforts in the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG)’s budget for 2021, merely a year after the pandemic began.
Some contact tracers themselves lacked the proper skills and equipment to conduct their work. In Malabon, a contact tracer recounted only working as a human resources recruiter before applying to help in local contact tracing, only to be surprised that his training was in the form of two hours’ worth of videos uploaded on a learning platform. Barangays in Manila, meanwhile, employed barangay tanods, who lacked computer skills that were needed to record COVID-19 cases. [a]
Keys to success
Being adaptable and responsive, therefore, became sought-after traits in contact tracers, one essential in the ever-changing nature of the outbreak. Contact tracers had to revise strategies on a day-to-day basis to address the needs of their patients. From overseeing vaccination sites to troubleshooting logistical challenges, their ability to pivot seamlessly ensured the efficient execution of critical public health initiatives.
Moreover, the collaboration between different agencies and sectors emerged as a vital factor in the effective management of the crisis. Eleria highlights the coordinated efforts of various departments which were instrumental in Quezon City’s response to the pandemic. This synergy extended beyond traditional health services, with traffic aides, business sectors, and community volunteers all playing pivotal roles in the collective endeavor to curb the spread of COVID-19.
Eleria also stresses the importance of manpower and resource allocation in the success of contact tracing efforts. Despite the threat posed by the virus, many volunteers and contractual workers signed up for tasks such as vaccine distribution and data encoding. For instance, a landlocked cruise ship waiter with a prior background as a nursing aide student became a team leader for contact tracers in Muntinlupa City. Likewise, a graduate of Entrepreneurship and mother of two took the leap to serve as a contact tracer in her hometown of Quezon City.[b]
Through their diverse workforce, the government was able to launch initiatives to boost the city’s vaccination rates. This includes QC Protektodo, a flu shot program, and drive-through vaccinations. Eleria even visited monasteries and conducted door-to-door vaccination campaigns for people who were sick or immobile.
Equipping for the future
Eleria believes that the COVID-19 pandemic was an “eye-opener” for all government agencies, helping them realize that it was not only the health department’s job to shoulder the burden of contact tracing, isolation, and vaccination. She cites the city’s Department of Public Order and Safety, which helped in directing traffic for vaccine transport, and the Business Permits and Licensing Department, which transformed malls into vaccination sites.
Moreover, she commended the proactivity of their local chief executive for their effective response to the pandemic. Among QC’s success stories in implementing COVID-19 measures is their relatively quick pace in providing vaccines to the then-eligible citizens; In August 2021, the city accounted for almost five percent of the then-13 million Filipinos who had received second doses of a vaccine against COVID-19. “Kung hindi ganon ka-active ang mayor namin, Quezon City will not be at the forerunner pagdating po sa response ng COVID-19 pandemic.”
(If our mayor was not that active, Quezon City would not be the forerunner of response to the COVID-19 pandemic.)
Eleria also notes that the heavy duties of working at the peak of the pandemic also equipped them better in managing health programs and troubleshooting issues that arise that need the health department’s intervention.
Nonetheless, she resigns to the unpredictability of a global outbreak, remarking that she thinks one can never be enough or prepared. She also touches on how she believes that COVID-19 will remain part of life, albeit in a minor form. “Hindi [na] tataas ang mortality natin, but syempre kailangan pa rin natin proteksiyonan [ang] high-risk group,” she says.
(Mortality numbers will not increase anymore, but still, we have to protect those in the high-risk group.)
Eleria’s statements and the contact tracers’ experiences as a whole reiterate the need to always remain vigilant and ensure our health systems are capable of shouldering even the heaviest of loads, should such an event happen again. In doing so, many of the hard-learned lessons from the pandemic still hold water. These lessons underscore the importance of maintaining a well-staffed, well-coordinated, and adaptable health system, ensuring that all necessary resources and strategies are in place to handle future health emergencies effectively.
By looking back at local response to the COVID-19 pandemic, it becomes clear that collective resilience and collaboration were drivers to a successful way to resolve a crisis that once seemed unsolvable. Despite everything, the experiences of these frontliners underscore the need to maintain a functioning health system and bolster support for personnel in the local health sector. Ensuring these will provide security and assurance that the country needs to face future challenges with the same resolve that found it a way out of the biggest health crisis it has faced in years.
