Malacañang on Tuesday said President Rodrigo Duterte has authorized the conduct of limited face-to-face classes for select medical courses in the country amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
“Ito po ay sa mga med schools and iyong mga medical allied programs,” Palace spokesman Harry Roque said.
The Commission on Higher Education said among the schools that have been allowed to hold limited face-to-face classes are the University of the Philippines (UP) Manila, Ateneo de Manila University and the Our Lady of Fatima University in Valenzuela, according to Ivan Mayrina’s “24 Oras” report on Monday
Classes allowed to hold in-person meetings are for lab courses and hospital-based internship/clerkship/practicum.
“Ito po ay para hindi tayo maubusan ng mga doktor ‘no, kung hindi po magpapatuloy iyong mga face-to-face na mga doktor and allied medical profession,” Roque said.
In August, Duterte heeded a plea by medical workers for a two-week modified enhanced community quarantine in Metro Manila and nearby areas as the frontliners signaled that the country’s healthcare system had been overwhelmed.
The country’s pandemic task force earlier approved face-to-face medical internship at the University of the Philippines-Manila. John Ezekiel J. Hirro