Seafarers told: Seek Ebola treatment Asap

MANILA – Sea-based overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) must not hesitate to seek immediate medical treatment if they suspect themselves to have acquired the deadly Ebola virus disease (EVD), a government official said yesterday.

“Early treatment can improve prognosis,” Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz said.

Baldoz also said Filipino seafarers must always exercise precaution, especially when docking in Ebola-hit countries such as Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone, where the Philippine government has imposed a total deployment ban on land-based OFWs.

“Every precaution should be exercised to ensure that spread of EVD is prevented,” Baldoz said.

Baldoz has already directed the Philippine Overseas Employment Ad- ministration (POEA) to sustain its information campaign among seafarers on Ebola.

“Mobilize POEA personnel to link up and coordinate with ship owners,

crewing agents, and manning agencies and continue disseminating accurate and updated information on the EVD, including prescribed precautionary measures,” she said.

Filipinos account for one third of the total seabased worker population of 300,000.