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For Singapore, Taiwan and Hong Kong, the experience of battling the SARS outbreak in 2003 helped citizens take the dangers of the novel coronavirus seriously.
Singapore, a small city-state of less than 6 million people, experienced one of the first and largest clusters of coronavirus cases in early February, before beginning its immediate and inexorable spread around the world.
In a matter of weeks, the number of infections with the highly contagious virus that causes COVID-19 in the country surpassed as cases skyrocketed in South Korea, several European countries and the United States. United.
Some methods are proving more effective than others in containing the pandemic: proactive efforts to track and isolate those infected, critical and affordable public health care, and transparent and reassuring messages from leaders. East Asia’s delight with the severe acute respiratory syndrome of 2003 (SARS), also originating in China, has also been helpful.
Since testing rates vary widely, it’s hard to be sure. But with the global number of infections reaching 200,000, Singapore appears to be one of the few places that ticks all the boxes, even as recent spikes in new cases show that any deviation can have disastrous consequences.
The first case in Singapore was reported on Jan. 23 in a 66-year-old man from Wuhan, the Chinese city where the disease was first detected in December.
In mid-February, the number of recovered patients in the Southeast Asian city-state exceeded the number of new cases. That was in early March, after 47 cases were traced to a collection dinner on February 15. As of Wednesday, Singapore had 266 confirmed cases. cases and no deaths from the virus.
As new infections increased, quarantine controls were tightened.
Taiwan has recorded only 100 cases and one death. The most recent cases concerned citizens returning from abroad.
Hong Kong has reported 167 cases and four deaths. Its leader, Carrie Lam, warned on Tuesday against any foreigners, saying anyone arriving from outside Greater China would be subject to a 14-day home quarantine or medical surveillance.
Of the thirteen cases detected in the small enclave of Macau, 10 have recovered. Casinos have been closed for weeks to fight the outbreak.
Cambodia, which has shown three dozen cases, last weekend banned foreigners from traveling from France, the United States, Spain, Germany, Italy and Iran after several new cases were discovered among travelers.
Similarly, Thailand appears to have brought cases under control through competitive public fitness campaigns aimed at minimizing infections, even though new cases emerged recently when stepped-up testing revealed outbreaks linked to a boxing tournament and an evening at a bar. So far, 177 cases have been reported among 70 million Thais, even though it is a popular destination for travelers, especially from China.
The virus that causes COVID-19 causes only mild symptoms in most people, but it can also cause severe illness, including pneumonia. The vast majority of people who suffer from it survive.
Assuming the figures reported to the World Health Organization are accurate, many countries with low numbers of cases are geographically isolated: Singapore, New Zealand, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka and Mongolia. Others may simply be lagging behind in testing and reporting: Russia, Indonesia, Vietnam.
For Singapore, Taiwan and Hong Kong, the experience of battling the SARS outbreak in 2003, which inflamed about 8,000 people and killed about 800, helped citizens take risks seriously, experts say.
“Almost everyone played ball and called accordingly,” said Leong Hoe Nam, an infectious disease specialist at Singapore’s Mount Elizabeth Ninth Hospital. “SARS was our baptism of fire and we were forced to be informed of everything by swimming in the depths of the pool. »
After the SARS outbreak, when another 238 people fell ill and 33 died in Singapore, the city revamped its healthcare system and developed new protocols to combat the outbreak. It has created “fever centers” to isolate suspects. cases, invested in devices and advanced education in the management of infectious diseases, Leong said. So when the first case of COVID-19 was discovered, Singapore was in a position to act, she said.
Since February 1, Singapore has blocked the access and transit of new visitors who had traveled to mainland China within 14 days. These restrictions have since been expanded to include visitors who have recently traveled to Iran, northern Italy, or South Korea.
When the number of local instances unrelated to past instances or China increased, the government raised its alert to “orange,” the second-highest level, on Feb. 7, reduced the number of participants and banned the maximum number of Chinese exhibitors and visitors from attending. Good hygiene and avoiding handshakes were recommended.
The National Public Health Laboratory, created after SARS, was able to speed up newly developed COVID-19 checks, complex diagnostics, and control kits.
Rapid testing and isolation of suspected cases, as well as careful contact tracing, with the help of police, surveillance videos and ATM recordings, helped prevent a worse local outbreak, said Tikki Pangestu, a visiting professor at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy and Public Policy. Alumnus. Director of Research Policy and Cooperation, WHO.
Once a COVID-19 case is confirmed, Singapore undertakes “diligent contract tracing,” Pangestu said. He ordered staff arriving from countries where virus infections are endemic to stay home. Worship services were suspended in favor of livestreaming after a group was discovered at a church. Schools have suspended mass assemblies and staggered recesses.
So far, another 5,700 people have been quarantined.
Also in Thailand, public gym staff are going door-to-door to detect contacts, said Thanarak Plipat, deputy director-general of the health ministry’s disease department. “We have to go through and see them for ourselves. This is an old public fitness method. We’re doing the best we can,” he said.
But recently there have been groups showing that a dinner party, a boxing match or a devotional collection can kill weeks of work.
In South Korea, where more than 270,000 people have been tested, new cases are dropping dramatically, but clusters continue to appear, in a call center, in a church where worshippers have shared a saltwater spray to “disinfect” others.
This week, Malaysia reported a spike in cases linked to religious gathering in its capital in late February. Cambodia, Thailand and Indonesia also showed new cases linked to harvesting.
It’s unclear whether the methods used in an authoritarian society like Singapore can succeed in larger states where other people expect greater individual freedoms. But as measures to combat the virus succeed to unprecedented degrees in many other countries, those policies seem prescient.
Singapore is a small island with strong public acceptance in government of “a strong health system, adequate data systems and a lot of money,” Pangestu said. “Many other countries, especially emerging countries, do not have those functions or characteristics. “
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, praised for adopting a transparent and calm approach from the start, said in a televised address last week that the situation was not yet over and that the government was making plans for the future, seeking to free up hospital beds to prepare for any eventuality. Increase in cases. case.
Singaporeans “feel like we’re all in this together,” Lee said, “and we’re not going to be left behind. “
By Ee Ming Toh and Elaine Kurtenback for The Associated Press. Asia Business editor-in-chief Elaine Kurtenbach reported from Bangkok.
The Associated Press has come under fire from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education for its fitness and science policy. The Palestinian Authority is only guilty of all the content.
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Singapore, a small city-state of less than 6 million people, experienced one of the first and largest clusters of coronavirus cases in early February, before beginning its immediate and inexorable spread around the world.
In a matter of weeks, the number of infections of the highly contagious virus that causes COVID-19 in the country has been surpassed by the dizzying number of infections in South Korea, several European countries and the United States.
Some methods are proving more effective than others in containing the pandemic: proactive efforts to track and isolate the infected, basic and affordable public physical care, and transparent and reassuring messages from leaders. East Asia’s delight over the 2003 severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), also originating in China, has also been helpful.
Because testing rates vary widely, it’s hard to be sure. But with a global number of infections of 200,000, Singapore appears to be one of the few places that ticks all those boxes, even if recent spikes in new cases show that any deviation can have disastrous consequences.
The first case in Singapore was reported on Jan. 23 in a 66-year-old man from Wuhan, the Chinese city where the disease was first detected in December.
In mid-February, the number of recovered patients in the Southeast Asian city-state surpassed the number of new cases. That was in early March, after 47 cases were traced at a collection dinner on Feb. 15. As of Wednesday, Singapore had 266 confirmed cases and no deaths from the virus.
As new infections increased, quarantine controls were tightened.
Taiwan has recorded only 100 cases and one death. The peak of recent cases concerned citizens returning from trips abroad.
Hong Kong has reported 167 cases and four deaths. Its leader, Carrie Lam, warned on Tuesday against any foreigners, saying anyone arriving from outside Greater China would be subject to a 14-day home quarantine or medical surveillance.
Of the thirteen cases detected in the small enclave of Macau, 10 have recovered. Casinos have been closed for weeks to fight the outbreak.
Cambodia, which has shown three dozen cases, last weekend banned foreigners from traveling from France, the United States, Spain, Germany, Italy and Iran after several new cases were discovered among travelers.
Similarly, Thailand appears to have brought cases under control through competitive public fitness campaigns aimed at minimizing infections; New cases recently emerged when intensified testing revealed outbreaks linked to a boxing tournament and a bar party. So far, 177 cases have been detected among 70 million Thais, despite the fact that it is a favorite destination for travelers, especially from China.
The virus that causes COVID-19 causes only mild symptoms in most people, but it can also cause severe illness, including pneumonia. The vast majority of people who suffer from it survive.
Assuming the figures reported to the World Health Organization are accurate, many countries with low numbers of cases are geographically isolated: Singapore, New Zealand, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka and Mongolia. Others may simply be lagging behind in testing and reporting: Russia, Indonesia, Vietnam.
For Singapore, Taiwan and Hong Kong, the experience of fighting the 2003 SARS outbreak, which infected about 8,000 people and killed about 800, helped citizens take the risks seriously, experts say.
“Almost everyone played ball and called accordingly,” said Leong Hoe Nam, an infectious disease specialist at Singapore’s Mount Elizabeth Ninth Hospital. “SARS was our baptism of fire and we were forced to be informed of everything by swimming in the depths of the pool. »
After the SARS outbreak, when another 238 people fell ill and 33 died in Singapore, the city revamped its healthcare system and developed new protocols to combat the outbreak. It has set up “fever centers” to isolate suspects. It invested in devices and advanced education in infectious disease management, Leong said. So when the first case of COVID-19 was discovered, Singapore was in a position to act, he said.
Since February 1, Singapore has blocked the access and transit of new visitors who had traveled to mainland China within 14 days. These restrictions have since been expanded to include visitors who have recently traveled to Iran, northern Italy, or South Korea.
When the number of local instances unrelated to past instances or China increased, the government raised its alert to the “orange” level, the second-highest level, on Feb. 7. It reduced the number of attendees and banned the maximum number of Chinese exhibitors and visitors. to attend. Good hygiene and avoiding handshakes were recommended.
The National Public Health Laboratory, created after SARS, was able to accelerate screening, complex diagnostics and newly developed COVID-19 control kits.
Rapid testing and isolation of suspected cases, as well as careful contact tracing, aided by police, surveillance videos and vending device recordings, helped prevent a worse local outbreak, said Tikki Pangestu, a visiting professor at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy and Public Policy. Former student. Director, Department of Research Policy and Cooperation, WHO.
Once a COVID-19 case is confirmed, Singapore embarks on a “diligent search for contracts”, Pangestu said. She ordered staff arriving from countries where viral infections are endemic to stay home. It was discovered in a church. Schools suspended mass assemblies and staggered recesses.
So far, another 5,700 people have been quarantined.
Also in Thailand, public gym staff are going door-to-door to screen for contacts, said Thanarak Plipat, deputy director-general of the health ministry’s disease department. “We have to go and see them ourselves. This is an old public fitness method. We are doing the best we can,” he said.
But recently it has been shown that a dinner party, a boxing match, or a devoted collection can cancel weeks of work.
In South Korea, where more than 270,000 people have been tested, new cases are dropping dramatically, but clusters continue to appear, in a call center, in a church where worshippers have shared a saltwater spray to “disinfect” others.
This week, Malaysia reported a spike in cases linked to religious gathering in its capital in late February. Cambodia, Thailand and Indonesia also showed new cases linked to harvesting.
It’s unclear whether the methods used in an authoritarian society like Singapore can succeed in larger states where other people expect greater individual freedoms. But as measures to combat the virus succeed to unprecedented degrees in many other countries, those policies seem prescient.
Singapore is a small island with strong public acceptance in government of “a strong health system, adequate data systems and a lot of money,” Pangestu said. “Many other countries, especially emerging countries, do not have those functions or characteristics. “
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, praised for taking a transparent and calm approach from the start, said in a televised address last week that the situation was still below and that the government was making plans for the future, seeking to free up hospital beds to prepare for any eventuality. Increase in cases. case.
Singaporeans “feel like we’re all in this together,” Lee said, “and we’re not going to be left behind. “
By Ee Ming Toh and Elaine Kurtenback for The Associated Press. Asia Business editor-in-chief Elaine Kurtenbach reported from Bangkok.
The Associated Press takes heat from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science Education Department for its fitness and science policy. The Palestinian Authority alone is to blame for all content.
Singapore, a small city-state of less than 6 million people, experienced one of the first and largest clusters of coronavirus cases in early February, before beginning its immediate and inexorable spread around the world.
In a matter of weeks, the number of infections of the highly contagious virus that causes COVID-19 in the country has been surpassed by the dizzying number of infections in South Korea, several European countries and the United States.