Health dept calls for calm amid MERS-CoV cases
HEALTH authorities yesterday advised the public not to panic over reports that passengers of Etihad Airways Flight EY 0424 were exposed to the Middle Eastern Respiratory Syndrome or MERS Coronavirus.
Regional Director Jaime Bernadas of the Department of Health (DOH) said eight of 10 passengers who came in contact with the overseas worker who initially tested positive for MERS-CoV were quarantined at the Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center in Cebu City.
Another passenger is confined in a private hospital in Cebu, while two others are in Bohol province and one in Negros Oriental.
Two are Nigerians and a still unidentified passenger.
According to the US Centers for Disease Control (CDC), the MERS-CoV was first discovered in Saudi Arabia two years ago. The disease was prevalent in and around the Arabian peninsula.
Swab tests
However, no travel advisory has been issued by health authorities restricting travel to Saudi Arabia.
In yesterday’s press conference in Cebu, Bernadas said the two Nigerians tested negative for MERS-CoV.
Two other passengers at the VSMMC will be tested tomorrow.
Dr. Gerardo Aquino, VSMMC chief, said eight passengers are under 72-hour quarantine pending the release of the results of their swab tests from the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine.
Bernadas also said while Central Visayas is still safe from MERS-CoV, the public should be vigilant in monitoring arrivals from other countries where the disease has taken root.
Team
Bernadas said the main symptoms of MERS-CoV are serious respiratory illness marked by high fever, coughs and shortness of breath. Neither cure nor vaccine has been found.
In Cebu City, Mayor Michael Rama said he will revive the team that monitored and dealt with reports over the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) virus outbreak in 2003.
City Administrator Lucelle Mercado said they will consult with the DOH in forming the team.
Councilor Dave Tumulak said the Cebu City government can provide ambulances to help transport people to DOH.
Health checklist
The Bureau of Quarantine said it is checking on passengers arriving at the Mactan Cebu International Airport.
A thermal scanner was installed at the MCIA’s international arrival area to check body temperatures of passengers.
Dr. Terence Anthony Bermejo said they are monitoring connecting flights from Hong Kong and Singapore to Cebu.
Arriving passengers are given a health declaration checklist to fill up.
The checklist includes their travel history, personal data, occupation, seat number, address in the Philippines and other contact details. They also have to disclose their medical history. The forms are collected on the plane.
“The incubation period of MERS-CoV is 14 days. The symptoms may not be seen or felt on the day of their arrival, so we decided to give out contact numbers so passengers can call authorities for assistance,” Bermejo said. /With Xavier University (XU) Development Communication Intern Kent A. Ugalde,
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