The risk of COVID-19 infection is no longer confined to the elderly and those with existing health conditions, as younger people aged 20 to 59 years old are now considered vulnerable groups.

Health social scientist and UP College of Medicine Professor Dr. Nina Castillo Carandang revealed in a recent interview with CNN Philippines that 80% of the current COVID-19 infections come from this age group. 

“These are the people who go to work and run errands because we want to protect the elderly who are at home and vulnerable. They are the returning OFWs usually of the productive age group, the locally-stranded individuals who got stranded in Manila during the March lockdown, and local employees,” she stated.

The World Health Organization has declared that majority of the cases in the Philippines, Japan, and Australia are attributed to those aged 20-59. They are likely to be transmitting the disease unknowingly as they have mild to no symptoms at all.

With these people needing to work, Dr. Carandang urges the need for more discipline, greater awareness, and enforcement of better standards, particularly in workplaces and transport modes that she said have not been fully implemented. She also hoped for improvements of policies in access to care, particularly testing, which is still difficult in many areas and for quicker turnaround time for tests. 

“The old are not tested anymore while the younger ones are braver to go out and some of them think they are not vulnerable; so they take for granted the mild symptoms they are having.” 

Under the crisis, there are four “tensions” inherent  in the COVID-19 pandemic that affect young people’s efforts to build self-esteem and self-identity: the tension of isolation, tension of the need for relevance, tension in unemployment, and tension in relationships. 

Dr. Carandang observed that as isolation becomes more rampant, there is an irrepressible biological need for them to connect virtually. 

“Isolation is a public health crisis because when you’re young, these are formative years for building your identity which is hard to do purely by digital means or without actual people to talk to. Moreover, purely relying to connect through digital means is at times harmful.” 

The tension of relevance refers to the need for young people to explore and to be heard which contribute to self-esteem. The lack of self-esteem contributes to the feeling of hopelessness. Without deep psychosocial and emotional reserves to dig into, it will be hard, according to Dr. Carandang. 

With the lockdown, she explained that the tension in unemployment and hunger will drive people to find ways to live; however, today’s generation does not have as much access to education and employment opportunities so they might end up poorer in the future, she noted. 

Lastly, the tension in relationships may lead to more emotional stress due to absence of connection brought by the lockdown. Worse, lockdowns may also lead to increased domestic violence and pregnancy, she added.

CYNTHIA VILLAMOR | Published in Healthscape Special COVID-19 Issue No. 15