China’s appeal: Report suspected cases of coronavirus infection

The government of China said that they are handling the spread of the new coronavirus in a serious and professional manner to safeguard global health. | Inquirer file photo

CEBU CITY, Philippines – The Chinese government is asking countries with suspected cases of the coronavirus infection to immediately inform their government of said cases to help control of the spread of the virus.

In a statement released Wednesday morning, January 22, 2020, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Geng Shuang gave the assurance that they have taken proactive measures to handle the spread of the new coronavirus in a “serious and professional manner.”

“We will work with all parties to jointly tackle the epidemic and safeguard regional and global health security,” Geng said.

Read: 5-year-old Chinese child in Cebu has recovered – DOH

“We have worked to formulate strict prevention and control schemes, spared no effort to treat the patients, properly managed close contacts, carried out in-depth epidemiological investigations, released the information on epidemic prevention and control in a timely manner, and launched campaigns to raise awareness of the disease.”

Geng said that since the spread of the virus, Chinese health authorities have released relevant information on the prevention and control of the pneumonia outbreak caused by the new coronavirus.

Read: New coronavirus strain in Cebu City

“At the same time, China has informed the World Health Organization, relevant nations, regional organizations, and its Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan regions of the outbreak in a timely manner and maintained close communication with them. We have shared with the WHO the information on the genome sequence of the new coronavirus as soon as possible. After receiving notification of cases from relevant countries, China has taken that seriously and stayed in close communication with all parties through bilateral and multilateral channels, while strengthening cooperation with all-out efforts to deal with them,” the statement said.

Read: DOH secretary Duque urges netizens not to spread unverified claims of coronavirus infection

The Chinese Embassy in Manila published a notice on Tuesday,  January 21, 2020, reminding all the Chinese tourists to properly arrange their itinerary according to their health condition.

“In all international airports in Chinese cities which have direct flights to Cebu, including airports in Shanghai, Jinjiang, Xiamen and Chongqing, the tourists’ body temperature is strictly monitored. Tourists who have high temperature are not allowed to board the airplane,” he said.

On Tuesday, January 21, 2020, Health Secretary Francisco Duque III confirmed in a press conference that they are investigating the case of a 5 year-old child from Wuhan City who tested positive for a non-specific pan-corona virus. /bmjo

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