Quick action on the part of the government and doctors in Xiamen, a
seaside resort city in east China's Fujian Province, has avoided
possible spread of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) there.
The potential for a large-scale contagion of SARS in Fujian arose
on April 1, when two of a group of 40 workers who were returning
from Hong Kong, where they had been living in a SARS-affected
apartment complex, were confirmed to be carrying the virus.
Wang Q. and Ke X., both employees of an aircraft engineering
company in Xiamen, returned to the province with other colleagues
on March 30 and 31. They had been sent by the company to Hong Kong
for a training program and had resided at the Amoy Gardens
apartments where some 80 SARS cases were confirmed by the HK health
authority during their stay.
Wang and Ke were diagnosed with SARS in the Zhongshan Hospital and
the First Hospital in Xiamen, respectively, on the same day.
Upon diagnostic confirmation, the Xiamen government, together with
senior provincial health officials, quickly worked out plans to
check the spread of the epidemic.
The city's respiratory disease center opened a SARS treatment
section in the Second Hospital of Xiamen. Doctors and experts were
mobilized to treat the patients.
Meanwhile, the city's anti-epidemic personnel were sent in two
groups to survey all of the people who had had contact with the two
patients on their return trip in the event that the disease had
been transmitted.
The most difficult but also most important task was also
undertaken: the medical staff began a massive search for Wang and
Ke's fellow trainees around the province.
They contacted the company and asked for the list of the trainees,
including their names, addresses and telephone numbers. A large
team of health workers was organized to locate these potential SARS
carriers, who, unaware of the danger, were about freely.
According to the company's information, 20 members of the group
were in Xiamen, while others had returned to other cities in the
province.
Following a harrowing two day search, all of the workers living in
Xiamen had been found and sent to a local sanitarium, which had
been converted into a SARS treatment station at the order of the
government.
As
for the rest of the people returning from Hong Kong, some were
impossible to reach since they were traveling or staying at the
homes of friends or relatives.
However, the health staff's dedicated efforts paid off, and by
April 7, a total of 36 workers and three relatives had been found
and sent to the sanitarium for monitoring and observation.
Tests and observation confirmed that the 39 people were,
fortunately, not infected, doctors said.
The two SARS victims are currently recovering. Wang told the
reporter on the phone that she is fine now, and doctors and nurses
have given her a great deal of encouragement in her fight against
the disease.
Jiang Xingtang, an experienced respiratory specialist, said Wang is
expected to be discharged in one week.
Health officials are maintaining contact with the company and
tracking the few remaining workers who have not yet been found.
(Xinhua News Agency April 19, 2003)