For Rhandy Torres, everyday is a challenge during a pandemic. Torres is a respiratory therapist in the Filipino American community in Los Angeles. He tells Giselle Tongi-Walters on behalf of the Pacific Asian Counseling Services the importance of why staying at home matters so much.

“What's happening right now is very alarming...hospitalizations are going to go up, therefore, making up the demand for our health care workers to try to take care of everybody. And we don't want that because then the chances of deaths going up..so it's very dangerous and hopefully it changes really soon,” says Torres.

Torres encourages us to remain vigilant because many of our community members are on the frontlines.

“Filipinos are naturally caring. We’re hard workers, so even (with COVID-19 out there and not understanding what’s happening) we still show up. We still work because that’s just how we are. And it’s for our family as well….Even though we may not fully understand it, we know people are getting sick and a lot of people are dying. There are a lot of children losing their parents and loved ones,” he says. “For simple things that we can do and we can adjust doing, we can change that fact of people dying because of this disease.”

Torres reminds the community, if you have to go out, wear masks and wash your hands frequently.

RELATED: Here are ways to protect yourself and your loved ones from COVID-19.

If you have any questions, you may reach out to Pacific Asian Counseling Services. They are available through email and phone calls. If you have any questions about COVID-19 related to symptoms and testing, and you are more comfortable conversing in Filipino, call the Pacific Asian Counseling Services at (562) 418-6161 or email FilipinoCovid@pacsla.org.