The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak has taken a toll on the lives of many people, especially in mainland China. However, over the past week, the virus has spread to more than 40 countries, infecting over 83,000 people with more than 2,800 deaths. Now, the UK's case toll increased to 16 as Northern Ireland reported its first coronavirus case.
Health officials said the patient had traveled from Italy, through Dublin and has manifested a presumptive positive result. A laboratory in England will confirm the result. England has reported two more cases on Feb. 27.
"We have been planning for the first positive case in Northern Ireland and have made clear that it was a question of when not if," Dr. Michael McBride, Northern Ireland chief medical officer, said.
Meanwhile, the Netherlands has also reported its first case of the coronavirus. In Italy, there are 655 cases, with 17 deaths. On the island of Tenerife, 168 British residents were told to self-quarantine at the H10 Costa Adeje Palace hotel after four guests tested positive for coronavirus. About 130 of about 700 guests staying at the hotel will be allowed to leave since they just arrived on Feb.24 and did not have contact with the four Italians who tested positive.
Schools, workplaces should shut down
Amid the global health crisis, sports events and concerts are getting canceled. Further, Prof. Chris Whitty, UK's chief medical officer, has warned that schools should be closed for more than two months if the coronavirus spreads further.
He added that the country should prepare for an extended period of disruption from their regular activities. Workplaces hare being advised to prepare for temporary shutdowns, with workers opting for possible work from home schemes.
The UK is not the only one contemplating shutting down schools. Japan has directed to close all schools starting on Mar. 2, to thwart the spread of the virus. The closure, which will affect about 13 million students, will go on until the school year ends in late March.
Pandemic potential?
The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak has now spread to 50 countries and territories outside of mainland China, with 54 deaths, mostly in Iran, with 26 deaths and Italy with 17 deaths.
Iran has 270 confirmed cases, while South Korea has the highest number of confirmed cases outside China, with 2,022 cases.
Further, nine new countries have reported cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, including Denmark, Brazil, Estonia, Greece, Georgia, Pakistan, Norway, Romania, and North Macedonia.
Though the WHO has not yet classified the coronavirus disease as a pandemic, the increasing number of infections across continents is alarming.
"We are at a decisive point," Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General, said.
"For the past two days, the number of new cases reported in the rest of the world has exceeded the number of new cases in China. My message to each of these countries is: this is your window of opportunity," he added.
He added that containment is possible since there are countries that have not reported additional cases in the past two weeks. However, he emphasized that these countries should not be lenient in containing the virus. Its wrath can be seen in what is happening in countries like Iran, Italy, and South Korea.
"This virus does not respect borders. It does not distinguish between races or ethnicities. It has no regard for a country's GDP or level of development. The point is not only to prevent cases arriving on your shores. The point is what you do when you have cases," Dr. Tedros added.
The WHO urged countries to develop a national plan against the coronavirus outbreak. People are encouraged not to panic, as taking actions to prevent infection is more important.
"Fear and panic don't help. People can have concerns and rightly so. People can be worried and rightly so. The most important thing is to calm down and do the right things to fight this very dangerous virus," he said.
COVID-19 shatters decades of global health progress, slashing life expectancy