Health worker found infected by Covid-19
BEIJING SAYS VISITORS TO THE CITY MUST SELF-QUARANTINE FOR 14 DAYS
>>A health worker was found to have been infected by coronavirus on Friday, bringing the total number of infections in the country to 34 since January.
The 35-year-old woman contracted the infection from a patient, Suwanchai Wattanayingcharoenchai, directorgeneral of the Department of Disease Control, said yesterday.
An investigation showed the woman did not wear a mask or protective suit while treating the patient, who at the time was diagnosed with another disease. The patient later developed a fever and cough, and was later found to have been infected with Covid-19.
The woman’s 24 colleagues who were also at risk tested negative and have yet to develop any symptoms.
The department said the woman worked at a private hospital, not at the Bamrasnaradura Infectious Diseases Institute where most coronavirus patients are being treated. After testing positive, she was moved to the institute, which is equipped to handle infectious diseases, the department added.
On Friday, a female Chinese tourist, 56, was discharged bringing the total number of cleared patients to 14, with 20 still in hospital, Dr Suwanchai said. Two of those being treated are in critical condition.
The doctor said the virus is contracted through mucous droplets. People are at risk if they go near an infected person while he or she is coughing or sneezing, as they can come into contact with secretions. People are advised to wash their hands frequently.
>>BEIJING: The death toll from China’s new coronavirus epidemic jumped past 1,500 yesterday as Beijing ordered people returning to the capital from holiday to self-quarantine for 14 days in another drastic effort to contain the outbreak.
More than 66,000 people have now been infected in China from a virus that emerged in central Hubei province in December before spreading across the country as millions of people travelled for the Lunar New Year holidays.
The holiday was extended by several days to prevent further contagion but people have slowly started to return to work in the past two weeks, though many are doing their jobs from home and schools remain closed.
Beijing’s municipal government enacted a rule on Friday requiring all people coming to the capital to quarantine themselves for 14 days, warning that violators would be punished, according to official media. It was unclear how authorities would enforce the measure.
Some 283 million trips were made within the country between January 25 and Friday, said vice transport minister Liu Xiaoming.
The scale of the epidemic ballooned last week after authorities changed their criteria for counting cases, adding thousands of new patients to their tally.
Chinese authorities have placed some 56 million people in Hubei and its capital Wuhan under quarantine, virtually sealing off the province from the rest of the country in an unprecedented effort to contain the virus.
A number of cities far from the epicentre have also imposed tough measures limiting the number of people who can leave their homes.
In another drastic preventive measure, China’s central bank said yesterday that used banknotes were being disinfected with ultraviolet light or high temperatures, and stored for up to 14 days before they are put back into circulation.
Several countries have banned arrivals from China and major airlines have cut services with the country.
But the epidemic has continued to spread across China and hundreds of cases have emerged in more than two dozen countries.
The biggest cluster outside China is on a quarantined cruise ship off Japan, where more than 200 people have been infected. The US embassy said it would evacuate Americans stranded on the vessel, who would face a further quarantine of two weeks in the United States.
In Singapore, which has 67 confirmed cases, the Roman Catholic Church said it was suspending all masses indefinitely to help prevent the spread of the virus and urged the faithful to follow services on YouTube or the radio.
Chinese President Xi Jinping acknowledged on Friday that the outbreak exposed “shortcomings” in the country’s health emergency response system.
Battling the outbreak is a “big test for the country’s governance system and governance ability”, Mr Xi said, according to state media.
The National Health Commission reported 143 new deaths yesterday, with all but four in Hubei, raising the toll to 1,523.
The commission also reported 2,641 new cases of the COVID-19 strain, with the vast majority in Hubei.