Charles Teves
John Arcilla cannot believe that he has lost 10 loved ones in a span of just a year.
The latest to pass away was his brother Emmanuel who succumbed to heart failure on June 14. Emmanuel was declared dead on arrival at a hospital in Baler, Aurora.
To make things worse, John and other family members weren’t allowed to visit Emmanuel because he tested positive for COVID-19 before dying. He was laid to rest the very next day.
“Today, my Brother Emmanuel Arcilla will be buried at once because he was ‘POSITIVE’ by antigen,” John wrote on Facebook. “My brother have been suffering from diabetes and Hypertension for several years now- and he was announced DEAD ON ARRIVAL due to HEART FAILURE but then He was DECLARED covid positive by an ANTIGEN few minutes after and it is a PROTOCOL that the body should be buried in less than 24 hours. So it PREVENTED His Kids, Grandchildren and us His Family to see His body, PAINFULLY UNDERSTANDABLE.” he added.
However, John is still skeptical on whether his brother really did contract the coronavirus. For some reason, their wish to have Emmanuel undergo a PCR test, which is considered the “gold standard,” was denied.
The family wanted to get a real swab test done from Emmanuel’s carcass but the hospital said doing so is prohibited.
“We asked for a real swab wishing to see the result after three days even if He’s already BURIED just to ease our minds but it is not an ‘allowed’ procedure anymore (?) according to the Hospital.
“It is just bothering and too much to bear because Doctor friends say that there’s still INACCURACY in COVID TESTINGS especially with just ANTIGENS and there are several incidents that some friends have experienced ‘false positive’ or ‘false negative’ and the MEDICAL COMMUNITY agreed that it is not a remote possibility.
“I know I should blame NO ONE since the inaccuracy in medical results and diagnostics will not be taken against HOSPITALS or DOCTORS.
“It could be in the testing tools or in the procedures itself since it is not a hundred percent perfected yet as experts said. So now my brother will be clinically declared as a person who died of covid, with uncertainty (?),” he said
John was also unable to visit his father Dominador Arcilla when he passed away last year in April due to health restrictions. But interestingly, Baler at the time had no confirmed COVID-19 cases.
“During my Father’s passing, also in Baler, there was an understandable brief wake for all our pleadings.
“Me and my siblings, all the kids and grandchildren here in Manila never had the chance to bury Him even if He died free of covid because of travel understandable restrictions and protocols.
“BALER by that time is still in a ZERO CASE Covid Status, nevertheless It was such a devastating moment in our lives.” he wrote.
Just like his brother, two of his sisters caught the coronavirus as well but thankfully survived.
“Around November in 2020, my younger sister and her family survived covid in their house. They just followed the advice of a Doctor’s vlog on how to Deal with Covid,”
John himself got infected by it too when he was in the United States. His case was considered severe and now he considers “this my second life,” but one of his relatives early in the pandemic did not make it.
“In times like these, it is hard to embrace every PAIN, STRESS, and CONSIDERATIONS all at the same time.
“My relative Gloria Sibal passed away in March 30, 2020, just 2 weeks right after the START of the lockdown in Manila due to covid according to the Hospital,”
Emmanuel was one of those people skeptical of COVID-19 vaccines and John can’t help but wonder if his brother would’ve survived had he taken a dose.
“I was thinking, will it be the same if my brother had his Vaccine? I am done with mine.
“I was able to convince some of my siblings and relatives after I’ve told them that it is not just for our own’s sake but it is our responsibility to our community and our country – some people are scared while a lot of people are ‘dying’ to wait for their TURN.
“We have been convincing my Brother Emmanuel to take the vaccine several weeks ago, but He does not believe or scared in the vaccine due to things they’ve been hearing from people.
“Sometimes you don’t know what to blame. The people’s Hesitation? the medicine’s limitations? or the people who delayed the VACCINES for whatever reasons, that are now about to expire?” he wrote.
Aside from the people mentioned, three relatives and four of John’s friends also passed away. Most of them died of cancer and heart failure.
“10 loved ones gone in a year time,” he said.
“It is the first time this thing happened and these are all stress-related either they were not going out totally or they don’t want to go to hospitals scared of contaminations.
“In some ways, it is all due to the pandemic climate.”
What he noticed is that the US is a much bigger country than the Philippines but is having a better time recovering from the health crisis.
“So after more than a year when will this covid scare, dying with covid and dying probably with the covid end? The USA is 400x bigger than our small Philippine archipelago but they’re starting to go back to normal.
“From WHOSE weakness why our situation is getting worse? It could be our people (baka madami pa din pasaway) It could be the People who make a business out of these miseries (Bakit sila nakakalusot).
“It could be some Public officials (bakit natin sila binoboto) Who really knows? But one thing is for sure, It is all our responsibility.
“We need to mature as people to ACT RESPONSIBLE and RELIABLE to LESSEN or totally avoid these kinds of misfortunes.
“I grieve for my brother, for all the loved ones who passed away, and to all families who had the same experience as ours.”
The only thing John can do now is to pray and hope for better days.
“I can say am better now in handling these situations compared to the months before this.
“My Family, my friends and my work PUSHED my perseverance to deal with it and they made me stronger.
“Keeping my TRUST and CONNECTION to the ALMIGHTY keeps me better every day.”
