MANILA, Philippines – “He is a casualty of this war.”

In a Facebook post on Saturday, March 21, the Philippine Heart Association (PHA) announced that one of its members died due to COVID-19 “while fulfilling his duties as a doctor.” 

“It is a sad day for the whole association as we have lost one of our own in the fight against COVID. He is a casualty of this war. We honor him as he lost his young life while fulfilling his duties as a doctor, a young cardiologist and a dedicated member of PHA,” the post read. 

The doctor wasn’t identified in the post. It wasn’t clear yet if he was among the 19 fatalities announced by the Department of Health (DOH) on Saturday. 

The PHA asked for prayers for the doctor, for the recovery of the COVID-19 patients, and for the coronavirus frontliners. (READ: LEFT IN THE DARK: Little protection forgovernment’s coronavirus frontliners)

“Please pray for all our members and all our other doctors and healthcare workers in the frontlines and all the people who are afflicted by the disease,” the PHA said. 

Meanwhile, at least 144 doctors and nurses at The Medical City (TMC) in Pasig City are under self-quarantine due to exposure to the coronavirus, based on the hospital’s daily update.

“Alam mo ‘yung challenge is not like ‘yung number lang, [pero] ang exposure ng mga doctor at ang bilis ng kalat [ng virus]. And then, nauubos na ‘yung mga PPEs (personal protective equipment) namin. ‘Yung kuwarto nako-convert na para sa mga wards para lang sa mga COVID-19 [patients],” TMC President and CEO Dr. Eugenio Ramos said in an interview with DZMM on Friday, March 20.

(The challenge here is not just the number of cases, but the exposure of the doctors and the quick spread of the virus. And then, our PPE supply is already getting low. We’re already converting the rooms into wards for the COVID-19 patients.)

As of Saturday, the Philippines has 307 confirmed cases of coronavirus, 19 have died and 13 have recovered. 

President Rodrigo Duterte declared a state of calamity as cases of coronavirus in the country continue to rise. 

The entire Luzon, meanwhile, is on lockdown from March 17 to April 12. – Rappler.com