VENUS B.

MACATUGGAL MST-SOCSCI

THE CORONA VIRUS OUTBREAKS; ITS EFFECT AND HOW DO PILIPINO FIGHTING FOR IT

INTRODUCTION

The outbreak of novel coronavirus “COVID-19” has created a global crisis that impacted the way we

perceive the world and our everyday lives. According to World Health Organization (WHO), the

pandemic has led to a dramatic loss of human life worldwide and presents an unprecedented threat to

public health, food systems, the world of education, and even work. Truly, the economic and social

disruption caused by the pandemic is devastating.

Philippines, in no single excuse, are severely challenged by this pandemic. Reports show that in March

2020, the country is placed in total lockdown to atleast restrict people’s movement as a way to limit that

spread of the virus. And up until this very moment, lockdowns are still present in most of the parts of

the country. Philippine economy is still not recovering, health of everyone is still at risk, and schools are

still not yet reopened for the learners. Despite the efforts from the government and from the health

workers/front liners, “better normal” in the “new normal” is still not yet achieved.

This crisis altered practically the way of our lives; the way we interact with the people, the way we do

business, the way children learn their lessons, and even the way we gather together even as families. A

big effort from everyone is really needed in order to survive and move forward; efforts to do adapt and

follow protocols until this fight are over.

Philippines being one of the most affected country with regards to COVID-19 outbreak, is still suffering

up to now. Reports/Records show that the country remains under high-risk classification with the

majority of its regions at moderate to high-risk health systems capacity. As a result, continuous limits are

still strictly implemented to almost every activity that individuals perform. This includes the “new

normal” which meant mandatory using of face masks and face shields, strict observation of social

distancing when in public, limited travels and gatherings, work from home, no face to face classes or

disruption of delivery of education and health services. Worst, this pandemic has caused significant loss

of lives.

Wearing of face masks and face shields. Department of Health (DOH) reiterates that using of face mask

and face shield provides added layer of protection to individuals. This may be an addition to the burden

of everyone as they need to buy one for themselves, however, it’s their cooperation that matters to

atleast lessen the risk of infecting others in case they have the virus with them. After all, everyone is a

suspect nowadays. With the increasing numbers of cases in the Philippines, we cannot afford to relax on

these simple preventive measures.

Social Distancing. The government urges the public to atleast stay one (1) meter distanced to whoever

they are talking with, may it be a simple “hello” and “hi”. This maybe again a “new” practice and a little

bit strange at first, but by doing such, we are protecting each other. By keeping a distance from others,

we can break the chain of COVID-19 transmission. But, we cannot deny the fact that this is somehow not

followed in some regions. And to note, even with the combined efforts from the local and national

government, still there are violators of this preventive measure.

travel and gathering. Gatherings are very much known to Filipinos, because we love spending time with

our families and friend-be it in a form of travel or a simple gathering inside the house. But because of

the pandemic, many are forced to postpone or even cancel some of their schedules. Even the Sunday

thanksgiving is affected that most of religious activities are done through online platforms. We are all

struggling in these “new normal”, but collective efforts and cooperation from everyone is highly

appreciated.

No face to face classes. As the COVID-19 pandemic continues, it has transformed the centuries-old,

chalk–talk teaching model (traditional learning) to one driven by technology. To overcome the loss of

not attending the classes and to learn even in when they are closed the idea of e-learning or virtual

classes has been embraced by the government. The e-learning is an integrated set of different

interactive online services that provide learners and others involved in education with information,

resources and tools to support and enhance education delivery and management. E-learning is used

Synonymously with virtual knowledge, online education, computer-based training, web-based

knowledge, and networked education. Classes are being conducted online and students are being

assigned to answer different set of modules, which they have to submit on time. Both the teachers and

students have adopted online means for teaching and learning delivery. But some students are

experiencing network issues, lack of training and lack of awareness about technology and different

online platforms. Therefore, as a teacher we always guide and support the needs of students in these

times of pandemic. We ensure that despite of this situation we are facing today, we are doing our best

to deliver the learning with different learning portals.

minimize the risk of COVID-19 infection. , many workers were advised to WFH full time, which redefined

the conventional concept of WFH that was typical only for certain types of work, on an occasional basis,

or given unique employee circumstances to limit the spread of the virus, with this workers saves daily

commuting time and have the benefits to spend more times with their families, relatives and love ones

and it allows employees to choose working at times when they are most productive.
CONCLUSION

The novel corona virus truly has impacted everything around us. It continues to spread across countries,

and will continue to spread without any definite timeline. Philippines are still one of the many countries

with increasing rate of positive cases and even deaths caused by the virus.

We’ve been through a lot during the pandemic-from the very start up until now. Employment,

education, health, lives, the way we live; they all changed in just a short span of time. If when will this

end, that we cannot answer. One thing is for sure, we need to make the best out of this worst scenario

we’re in. For in these trying times, there’s no room for loneliness, but rather of collective hope that soon

this will be over.

And, in conclusion, no one expected for this to come. We’re all unprepared and clueless of the

possibilities. Neither did we imagined that somehow in sometime, we’re going to experience this in our

life. From being surrounded with our families and friends most of the time, to minimal time of spending

with them. From being connected to the society for new learning and experiences, to staying at home

because it is the safest place now. We are all humans after all, our role is to adapt on this changing

world. It may really be hard, but all things are possible if we put efforts on it.

Our healthcare workers and front liners are still doing their best to stop and lessen the death counts

caused by the pandemic. All are trying to save the lives of the hospitalized individuals who tested

positive from COVID-19. Even with tiredness on their faces, they don’t stop just to fulfil their work. It is

our part to return the favor on them, and to start our safety and safety of the others in our own homes.

We don’t have much time to disobey the protocols and ignore these impacts. We need to stop the

spread of the virus the sooner time possible.

way to at least minimize the number of persons outside their homes, lowering the risk of spreading the

virus on public places. Safety protocols are also implemented for us to follow, and not to ignore. The

responsibility is not on the government alone, but also within us.

The COVID-19 has been an eye-opener to everyone that we are all interconnected- that no one is safe

until everybody else is safe. It is only through the helping hand we will extend to each other that we can

overcome the devastating impact of the virus.

“Bayanihan” is innate to Filipinos. Challenges in different catastrophes, may it be natural or man-made,

evidences will prove that in the Philippines, we treat each other as families. Even at times of this

suffering due to COVID-19, and despite the threats to health, there are still Filipinos who choose to help

their “kababayans” in their own way. Community pantries and rolling pantries are some of the proofs of

this. However, in some places community pantries are being criticized on how it is being done because

the safety protocols are not being observed. There is nothing wrong in the eagerness to help others, but,

it is better if we will follow the safety measures so that everyone and everything is safe. In that way, we

are able to help others while making them safe.

The government is also doing its part to help. By the time it issued a proclamation of putting the country

on a lockdown, it already shows that it is very much willing to atleast contain and stop the spread of the

virus and to stop local transmissions. Travel restrictions, cutting down of face-to-face classes, are also

ways of the government to help control the possibilities of spreading the virus. However, there is no

perfect government as they say. This is true in the Philippines, because not all its activities during this

pandemic, are successfully implemented. And despite the fact that budget is not enough to cater the

needs of the Filipinos, there are still reports that some of the government agencies and officials are

doing their own thing.

can do nothing if we don’t do our parts. No matter how long the lockdown will run in the country, if

there’s no effort from the society, successful fight against the virus will never be possible. It’s really hard

to control every movement that we are to take, and very challenging to live the new normal nowadays,

but together, we’ll win the fight.

A strategy that may be implemented is where all members of the society should consider being

responsible of their own and of others as the battle to the virus is on the process. Obedience to the

health safety measures will be of great help- wearing facemask/face shields, social distancing, limited

family gatherings/travels, and switching to online learning. Healthcare workers in the Philippines are

now feeling very exhausted because of the continuous increase in the number of positive cases in the

country. Small efforts when combined will be of GREAT help to them.

In times like of this crisis, good governance is much needed more than ever. It will be crucial to the

government both to attend the needs of the people and the recovery plus the building of a successful

“new normal” in the country. In cases of the lockdown status of the country, it would be better if the

government will see to it that the basic health protocols are strictly followed. In the hospital where

numbers of patients are continuously growing, medical systems should be reorganized- additional

hospital beds and additional health care facilities for isolation purposes. In cases of delivery of

education, a free internet connection should be given not necessarily on every household but in a

certain place, will be of great help most especially to those who are less fortunate. Successful

implementation of these will equate fo minimizing health damage to the society.

Truly, together, we can stop COVID-19!

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