Experience with the enhanced community quarantine was difficult as it suddenly limited our movements and scared us to closing doors to our neighbors and staying home to cut off the risk of transmission of this invisible enemy.
Cebu City was one of the cities in the Philippines with a lot of COVID-19 positive cases and we tried our best to cope with aggressive community testing vis a vis hospital-based testing for severe and critically symptomatic patients. We also see during this time all the innovative changes to adapt to challenges posed by the risk of transmission of COVID-19. We also see teamwork, unity and the caring communities of volunteers and donors.
As some of the communities in the Philippines reopen to resume economic activities, there is a need to redesign society to adapt to the "NEW NORMAL" for as long as the threat of transmission of COVID-19 is still there. We hear about ECQ, GCQ and MGCQ in the news, classification of which should be based on epidemiology of COVID-19 in the localities. Under the revised guidelines of the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID), an area can be considered as under the "new normal" if the community quarantine implemented has transitioned into modified general community quarantine (MGCQ) which is the most relaxed community quarantined implemented by the government.
The Department of Health has already issued Department Memorandum 2020-0220 on interim guidelines on return-to-work which companies have started reviewing to comply for reopening and resuming work activities. There are a lot of aspects in society to be considered for the "new normal" include education, agriculture, industry, corporate world, tourism and recreation.
Amid all these preparations to reopen societies, Europol warns the public in every country in Europe to protect your children, house, finances and data now that confinement measures are starting to relax.
What is your definition of the new normal?
What is the role and impact of social media on day to day activities for the new normal?
What are your suggestions for redesigning our communities and work places to adapt to the new normal?
