[Reporter’s View]Trust is essential to prevent a MERS II

As the fourth confirmed person in China's Wuhan Pneumonia (2019-nCoV Infection) emerges, there is growing concern over whether outbreak of the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) that occurred in 2015 could be reproduced.

 

Beyond the concerns, people who have experienced the MERS crisis, as well as nursing institutions such as hospitals, clinics and pharmacies are terrified.

 

On December 31, Wuhan in China, announced that 27 patients with unknown pneumonia (Wuhan pneumonia) were in quarantine treatment, the first death of Wuhan pneumonia occurred in China on January 10 this year.

 

The incident occurred in China close to Korea, but until this time, people did not imagine that Wuhan pneumonia would become a concern of the whole nation as it was called 'SARS II' or 'MERS II'.

 

The Korean people began to pay attention after January 20, when a Chinese woman (35) who entered Korea was confirmed as the first confirmation of Wuhan pneumonia.

 

Until this time, Wuhan pneumonia was the 'item' covered in major daily newspapers, and there were very few articles on Wuhan pneumonia or new coronavirus in the professional journals.

 

However, when the second confirmed person (male, 55) on the 24th, the third confirmed person (male, 54) on the 26th, and the fourth confirmed person (male, 55) on the 27th, all the media has been talking about Wuhan pneumonia or new coronavirus.

 

It is a feeling that the 'MERS II' situation has been reproduced from the media.

 

Five years ago, as a result of the MERS outbreak, as a journalist, I vowed to deliver prompt, accurate information to the public.

 

In addition, I thought that the press should act as a 'bridgehead' to ensure that our government publishes the right information in the flood of false information, and that the people can trust the official announcement without disturbing the false information.

 

This belief has not changed at all.

 

The government is actively coping with Wuhan pneumonia faster than the MERS outbreak.

 

The KCDC raised the warning level of infectious disease crisis from 'interest' to 'caution' after the first confirmation of Wuhan Pneumonia.

 

The National Medical Center was designated as the 'new coronavirus infectious institution'.

 

The Central Accident Prevention Division was set up by the Minister of Health and Welfare.

 

Everything was done seven days after the first confirmation.

 

People should work together to prevent the spread of Wuhan pneumonia by checking information on the outbreak trends and press releases through the website of the KCDC (http://www.cdc.go.kr/).

 

Not only the trust of the people, the government, and the media, but also the efforts of medical professionals who are committed in the medical field are needed.

 

On the 21st, the day after the announcement of the first confirmed patient in Korea, the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service distributed information to medical institutions and asked for checking entrant information of the area where Wuhan pneumonia occurred through the Drug Safety Use Service (DUR).

 

However, because the law does not enforce the use of DUR, some hospitals, clinics, and pharmacies have turned off the DUR program or have turned off the ITS(International Traveler Information System) program in the DUR.

 

According to the HIRA, 30% of medical institutions do not use ITS.

 

At this time, medical institutions should turn the ITS in the DUR system to 'ON' to receive information on the immigrants from Wuhan-pneumonia-infected areas and make efforts to prevent contact with them sooner.

 

Five years ago, we overcame the MERS crisis while listening to the news of patients dying from MERS daily.

 

According to experts, Wuhan pneumonia is likely to cause severe pneumonia, but there is no vaccine to treat.

 

However, no deaths have occurred in Korea yet.

 

This is because secondary infections are prevented by administering antiviral agents or antibiotics depending on the patient's condition.

 

In the flood of information that is poured out every day, I hope that people will only select the right information and don’t forget 'hand washing' and 'masking', which are guidelines for preventing infectious diseases.