Credit - HK Gov
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The confirmation last night that Japan received an infected traveler from Wuhan carrying the novel Coronavirus on January 6th - someone who reportedly had no direct contact with the Wuhan Seafood market - has raised additional concerns over how this virus might be spreading.
Today, Hong Kong's CHP has published a summary of what is known about Japan's imported case, and announced revised and expanded testing criteria for symptomatic travelers from the Mainland.Although we haven't learned the details of this patient's possible exposure, he reportedly had some kind of close contact with a pneumonia patient while on the mainland. Given the propensity for both SARS and MERS-CoV to spread in hospital environments, any symptomatic travelers who visited a Mainland hospital (or had contact with a known case) will now be tested.
CHP closely monitors confirmed case of infection of novel coronavirus in Japan and revises reporting criteria
The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health said today (January 16) that the CHP has been closely monitoring a new confirmed case of infection of novel coronavirus in Japan. The public is again urged to maintain strict personal, food and environmental hygiene both locally and during travel.
According to information from the health authority of Japan, the case involved a male patient in his thirties who is living in Kanagawa, Japan. The patient, who had earlier travelled to Wuhan, Hubei Province, developed a fever on January 3 and returned to Japan on January 6 and sought medical attention on the same day.
He was admitted to a local hospital on January 10 and was discharged on January 15. He tested positive for the novel coronavirus on January 15. According to the patient, he did not visit the Hua Nan Seafood Market in Wuhan but had contact with a pneumonia patient while he was in Wuhan.
In view of the latest situation and risk assessment, the CHP will enhance surveillance of suspected cases and revise the reporting criteria of "Severe Respiratory Disease associated with a Novel Infectious Agent". Details are as follows:
Medical practitioners are requested to make a report to the CHP for further investigation if they encounter an individual with fever and acute respiratory illness, or pneumonia, and who had experienced one of the following within 14 days prior to the onset of symptoms:
(a) visited Wuhan (regardless of whether the individual had visited wet markets or seafood markets there); or
(b) visited a medical hospital in the Mainland; or
(c) had close contact with a confirmed case of the novel coronavirus while that patient was symptomatic.
A spokesman for the CHP said, "The CHP will issue letters to doctors and private hospitals to inform them of the revised reporting criteria. The CHP will continue to maintain its liaisons with the World Health Organization, the National Health Commission and relevant overseas health authorities, and closely monitor the situation for risk assessment. The reporting criteria will be adjusted in a timely manner according to the prevailing situation."
The Port Health Division (PHD) of the CHP has earlier strengthened port health measures and enhanced temperature screenings of travellers with increased frequency of random checking at all boundary control points. An additional thermal imaging system dedicated for temperature screenings of travellers from flights arriving in Hong Kong from Wuhan has been put in place at Hong Kong International Airport.
Moreover, additional temperature checks using handheld infrared thermometers for all inbound travellers during the periods when the two daily high-speed trains with stops at Wuhan arriving in Hong Kong are conducted to ensure that the body temperatures of all passengers from these two trains are checked. Travellers who fulfilled the above reporting criteria will be immediately referred to public hospitals for isolation, treatment and follow-up.
The PHD has advised the MTR Corporation Limited, the Airport Authority Hong Kong and relevant airlines to strengthen the cleaning and disinfection work for high-speed trains and aircraft arriving in Hong Kong from Wuhan. Cleaning and disinfection work for the West Kowloon Station of the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link and airport terminal buildings have also been stepped up. Furthermore, the PHD has enhanced the dissemination of health messages through broadcasts to travellers in, for example, flight cabins and the West Kowloon Station, distribution of leaflets, displaying posters and promulgating travel health news via websites. The PHD will continue to maintain close liaisons with stakeholders of all boundary control points to update them in a timely manner about the latest situation and relevant measures.
A dedicated webpage (www.chp.gov.hk/en/features/102465.html) has been set up by the CHP to provide relevant information and health advice. To address the public's concern, the CHP will announce the details of cases fulfilling the reporting criteria (www.chp.gov.hk/files/pdf/enhanced_sur_pneumonia_wuhan_eng.pdf) on the above webpage daily to enhance transparency.
(SNIP)
Ends/Thursday, January 16, 2020
Issued at HKT 19:20
