Charles Teves
Dr. Edsel Salvana, the Director of the Institute of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology at the National Institutes of Health at the University of the Philippines Manila, has been criticized as of late for allegedly giving out wrong information regarding COVID-19.
On Thursday, Dr. Salvana retweeted an article he wrote for Esquiremag saying “ISOLATION needs to happen for suspected cases BEFORE testing is done or results are back, and should continue for PROBABLE cases even if testing results are negative.”
Testing is important. But ISOLATION needs to happen for suspected cases BEFORE testing is done or results are back, and should continue for PROBABLE cases even if testing results are negative. Testing is PART of the solution, isolation is the KEY. #COVID19 https://t.co/br2bFxI06o
— Dr. Edsel Salvana (@EdselSalvana) April 22, 2020
Experts were dropping facts and opinions in reply to his tweet.
It wasn’t long until people saw that Dr. Salvana was hiding certain replies that seem to go against opinions specifically those who are well versed on the matter.
Molecular biologists are calling out Dr. Salvaña’s misrepresentation of data and he’s out here HIDING THE REPLIES
— Reyna Valmores (@ReynaValmores) April 24, 2020
https://twitter.com/santosantito8/status/1253567429495554048?s=20
Bakit naghahide ng replies, Dr.??? LOLLLLL
— ⱼₑₐₙ (@zheahorse) April 24, 2020
https://twitter.com/brawnays/status/1253610330225119235?s=20
STOP HIDING THE REPLIES
— りのﾌﾑ (@capelorum) April 24, 2020
https://twitter.com/CarolinaDanver3/status/1253543588559876096?s=20
This isn’t the first time Dr. Salvana has been accused of misinformation.
In March, he got into it with several Twitter users.
Please don't take hydroxychloroquine (Plaquenil) plus Azithromycin for #COVID19 UNLESS your doctor prescribes it. Both drugs affect the QT interval of your heart and can lead to arrhythmias and sudden death, especially if you are taking other meds or have a heart condition.
— Dr. Edsel Salvana (@EdselSalvana) March 21, 2020
You do realize they must be prescribed by a doctor. Hard to hoard anything that isn't readily available on the shelf. This almost seems like a joke
— Shannon Thomas (@HiddenAbuse) March 21, 2020
https://twitter.com/JosephusD/status/1241532412292739076?s=20
Dr. Salvana then blocked one of them after getting fact-checked.
Also in March, Kapuso resident political analyst Richard Heydarian went off on Dr. Salvana for saying that the virus has already been contained back in February. One of the screenshots shows Dr. Salvana going off on his critics.
Wait, is this the same “expert” who claimed “contained” nila yung CORONAVIRUS epidemic just weeks ago??? Koya: thanks to INTERNET, we can READ analysis by real TOP EXPERTS in the WORLD, kaya sorry nlng sayo and your “educational” tweets! Can we confirm these screenshots please… pic.twitter.com/lfPO22BVmg
— Richard Heydarian (@RichHeydarian) March 30, 2020
Kapuso journalist Atom Araullo also did his research and had an exchange with Dr. Salvana.
Then sir, I’m sorry to say but your tweets are misleading at best, and malicious at worst. I was NOT referring to total number of tests but individuals tested! This is what the DOH tracks anyway. So hindi pala inaccurate yung data. https://t.co/J1xQZDpzxx pic.twitter.com/eWEPeCRJ4t
— Atom Araullo (@atomaraullo) March 27, 2020
The exchange started when Atom decided to compare how weak the testing rate in the Philippines was relative to its Asian neighbors.
Dr. Salvana replied saying Atom’s information was inaccurate.
Atom, the 2147 tests is inaccurate. Its not as simple as adding the COVID tracker numbers. Positive patients get many repeat tests until they turn negative. The actual tests performed is 11,466. Capacity now at more than 1000 test/day. DOH will update. https://t.co/avBoas8HrG
— Dr. Edsel Salvana (@EdselSalvana) March 27, 2020
Atom then questioned the DOH’s reliability on the matter.
As of 5pm today, DOH confirms info on their tracking website that 2147 individuals have been tested for #COVID19, says figure is expected to rise. Dr. @EdselSalvana meanwhile says the TOTAL number of tests done is 11466 (not individuals).
1/4
— Atom Araullo (@atomaraullo) March 27, 2020
What accounts for the discrepancy is unclear. Hindi lang ba updated ang numero ng DOH? (Bakit?) Is each individual tested an average of 5 times?
2/4
— Atom Araullo (@atomaraullo) March 27, 2020
I have to point out that figures released by other countries usually reflect total number of tested individuals (not total number of tests) because it provides a better picture of what’s going on.
3/4
— Atom Araullo (@atomaraullo) March 27, 2020
And because these are delicate times, I have to provide a disclaimer that we are NOT criticizing our front liners in charge of this important work. In fact we salute you. We are just presenting the facts as they are presented to us.
4/4
— Atom Araullo (@atomaraullo) March 27, 2020
I don’t understand this graphic and I cannot speak for the Inquirer. Sir, maybe you were reacting out of emotion. I know the feeling. But accurate and timely information is so critical at this time. It will be bad for everyone if we cast doubt into this process.
— Atom Araullo (@atomaraullo) March 27, 2020
As I already said, positive individuals are tested several times before they test negative prior to discharge. They need 2 consecutive negative tests before discharge per protocol. Sometimes it takes a long time to get there. This is being modified so that the backlog is less.
— Dr. Edsel Salvana (@EdselSalvana) March 27, 2020
Atom made it clear he was referring to the number of tested individuals not the number of tests done as being pushed by Salvana.
No, individuals tested. See link for vietnam and screengrab for Malaysia. H/T @dingclancyhttps://t.co/xebLd7cT1t pic.twitter.com/rxvTTr2wSQ
— Atom Araullo (@atomaraullo) March 27, 2020
He added more reports to support his claim.
Sir that comes from the official tracker of Vietnam itself. And looking at the same data, it says “for some countries the number of tests correspond to the number of individuals who have been tested, rather than the number of samples.” See highlighted section. pic.twitter.com/N7S8pGwgQF
— Atom Araullo (@atomaraullo) March 27, 2020
Too contentious. Anyway drop Vietnam. Singapore is tests: https://t.co/TfIa3c9t2v
— Dr. Edsel Salvana (@EdselSalvana) March 27, 2020
39000 individual tests now is more consistent with that trend. Othewise total tests would be way higher than that, because as you say, they perform the test several times on one person.
— Atom Araullo (@atomaraullo) March 27, 2020
Anyway, bottom line is we can't compare apples to oranges. 39k for Singapore is tests, 30k for Vietnam is individuals or tests (no idea, maybe both). 2k for Philippines is individuals, 11k for tests. Its easy to confuse as you said, but accurate data comparison is important.
— Dr. Edsel Salvana (@EdselSalvana) March 27, 2020
Atom did not flip-flop and stood by his initial tweet.
Honestly, I don’t see the utility of reporting total number of tests anyway, aside from research purposes and to show testing capacity. The data would skewed because the number of times an individual is tested varies a lot.
— Atom Araullo (@atomaraullo) March 27, 2020
Earlier this month, before mass testing even started, Dr. Salvana tweeted saying: “This really seems to indicate flattening” referring to the data on the number of cases in the country.
The public trashed him for his conclusion which had no basis.
Oh I never knew you can write conclusion first before completing data collection. Di pa nga po nagstart ang mass testing. Wag po sana muna excited.. 😐
— jam maramot (@joycemaramot) April 5, 2020
This is why we don't say the curve is flattening based on a 2-day weekend drop. You're giving people false hope. https://t.co/Kn2Cockc1S
— ً (@raphaelmiguel) April 6, 2020
A doctor replied saying his tweet is not something the public should believe in.
Yup, "Flattening the curve" was too early to call.
Please distance safely, wear masks and wash hands! https://t.co/pj5Irj6PZA
— Aileen Dualan MD (@megamomph) April 6, 2020
Sir, have you checked the number of tests that are conducted per day? The 538 cases was a function of the number of tests that were processed that day. If you check the previous day, it was low because the number of tests that were processed was low.
— Wayne Manuel (@wdmanuel) April 5, 2020
158 new cases. That's higher than yesterday's 76 cases but lower than the March 31 peak of 538 cases. This really seems to indicate flattening. This is encouraging and points to a real effect of ECQ. Extension is an option, but the hardest hit will need a lot of support. #COVID19 pic.twitter.com/zEPyYI4tjF
— Dr. Edsel Salvana (@EdselSalvana) April 5, 2020
https://twitter.com/darnitJC/status/1247011504420880386?s=20
This is a REALLY dangerous conclusion tho kasi di pa tayo nagmamass testing. Current evidence pa lang, although indicative of flattening, still has a high error,,, we'll only really see kung nagflaflatten talaga after mass testing is employed kaya #MassTestingNow https://t.co/CAk24s39zg
— Austin (@Probotype) April 5, 2020
what
first, we havent done mass testing yet
second, fluctuations do exist and real life stats are not always consistent
third, the conclusion is meaningless if data collection is not yet done
lastly, YOU CANNOT EXTRAPOLATE DATA FROM THE DIFFERENCE OF A FEW DAYS. https://t.co/EQelTzxeV3— ᜑᜇᜓᜇᜄᜓᜈ᜔ᜇᜒ᜶ @[email protected] (@harudagondi) April 5, 2020
Two weeks after Salvana’s tweet, the Palace said that the curve has not been flattened yet.
Presidential Spokesman Harry Roque confirmed this in a briefing.
“Sa available data po natin and April 30 is only one week away, ngayon po, sa ngayon po hindi pa po natin naflatten ang curve.”
The Philippines now has 7,294 confirmed cases with 494 deaths.
