Hanoi prepares VND25 billion for Mers-CoV prevention

As the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Corona virus (MERS-CoV) is undergoing complex changes in foreign countries, departments and agencies in Hanoi have prepared diverse methods to promptly cope with any possible cases. Accordingly, it has prepared VND25 billion to prevent the disease.

Korean passengers fill in heath declaration forms at the Noi Bai International Airport. (Photo: VOV)

To raise health staff’s awareness and prevent transmission in hospitals, the city Department of Health has increased the dissemination of the disease information among health workers as well as people, on the symptoms and the preventive measures against Mers-CoV.

The city Health Department has suggested people coming from infected regions to declare their heath situation to the health sector while distributing 16,000 fliers and 1,600 posters about the disease at Noi Bai International Airport and the areas at high risk of reporting the disease.

It has also worked with the Ministry of Health to check on the readiness in prevention of the disease at Noi Bai International Airport and hospitals; set up 5 working delegations on Mers-CoV prevention at different districts and prepared enough equipment, chemicals and medicine for the prevention and environmental protection.

On June 20th, the Hanoi Health Department held a rehearsal on the prevention of MERS - CoV.

According to Nguyen Khac Hien, Director of the city Health Department, information on the preventive measures has been written in the Korean language and transferred to foundations and hotels in districts that report a high number of Korean citizens. Meanwhile, a hotline has been set up to answer any questions in the Vietnamese, English and Korean languages about the disease.

At the airport, Le Duc Tho, Director of the Hanoi international health quarantine centre, said that the staff had been mobilised around the clock to inspect all flights, especially the 12 flights from the Republic of Korea and one from the Middle East each day.

On the other hand, the city police has worked with the city Health Department to ensure security and social order, and establish field hospitals in case of large number of cases reported.

Mers-CoV has been reported in countries that are geographically near Vietnam, including the Republic of Korea, Thailand, the Philippines and China, leading a high risk of penetration into Vietnam through international gates and seaports.

(Source: CPV)