SINCE the Wuhan coronavirus crisis began last December 31, 2019, the Philippine government has been quick to ensure that the country is safe from the new disease that has already spread to some countries around the globe.
The Department of Health (DoH) said 11 foreign nationals – Chinese, Americans, Germans, and Brazilians – were immediately isolated and their illness monitored and three have already been declared negative for the virus and discharged from the hospital. Sixteen more foreigners have since been added to the cases under close watch.
The first indication of crisis in China was on December 31 when the Wuhan Municipal Health Committee Medical Administration issued an “urgent notice on the treatment of pneumonia of unknown cause.” Adding urgency to the emergency was the impending Spring Festival or Chinese New Year, when hundreds of millions travel to their homes all over China, a country of 1.3 billion people.
China President Xi Jinping mobilized the country’s resources, saying, “Party committees, government and relevant departments must put people’s lives and health first.” The Chinese government immediately coordinated with the World Health Organization (WHO) as it acted to contain the spread of the virus to other cities. Three days before the festival, Wuhan was quarantined.
China mobilized its medical experts to identify the virus, while treating those infected. On January 25 the China Center for Disease Control isolated the virus and started developing a vaccine. “WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus hailed China’s quick action to contain the spread of the virus in Wuhan and other cities.
As of January 27, fatalities were reported at 81 in China, mostly among older men with previous health issues. This compares with two previous virus crises – the SARS crisis of 2002-2003 which killed 774 and the MERS-CoV crisis in South Korea which killed 38.
China’s National Health Commission reported a total of 3,744 confirmed infections nationwide, and some 30,000 under observation. The Ministry of Finance said a total of $1.62 billion has been allocated for the treatment of victims, procurement of medical equipment, and epidemic control materials.
Around the world, a close watch is underway on eight suspected cases each in Hong Kong, five suspected cases each in Taiwan, Australia, and Macau; four cases each in Singapore, Japan, South Korea, and Malaysia; three in France; two each in Canada and Vietnam; and one in Nepal.
We have no Filipino cases but we have had 27 foreign visitors, of which three have already been cleared. We hope the other cases in the world will also be cleared. As for the cases in China, we are assured that the Chinese government has mobilized all its resources and we are confident that the coronavirus crisis – like the SARS and the MERS-CoV virus outbreaks before it – will soon be over.
