DOH to the public on the 2nd confirmed case of MERSCoV in the country: No reason to panic

DOH Secretary Janette Garin (Photo courtesy of the DOH)

MANILA – “There is no reason to panic.”

The Department of Health (DOH) stressed this as it appealed to the public on Monday to refrain from developing panic over the reported case of a confirmed Middle East Respiratory Syndrome-Corona Virus (MERSCov) case in the Philippines.

It was not the first time that the DOH confirmed the existence of MERSCoV positive patient in the country.

Last February, the agency said that a pregnant Filipina nurse who had just arrived from Saudi Arabia yielded positive to MERSCoV infection.

The nurse was already healed after the DOH gave prompt care and monitoring on her condition at the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM).

“There is no reason to panic,” DOH Secretary Janette L. Garin assured in a press briefing held at the DOH Media Relations Unit in Sta. Cruz, Manila.

According to Dr. Garin, the male patient, a foreign national, was detected positive with MERSCoV after the confirmatory test conducted at the RITM, where he was referred on July 4, yielded positive results.

The patient is currently being treated at the negative pressure room of the RITM in Alabang, Muntinlupa City.

“The 36-year-old patient is currently being monitored…He is under stable condition,” Secretary Garin said.

The Health chief said the patient, whose nationality was not disclosed, suffered flu-like symptoms on July 2 that made him decide to seek early consultation.

Having a travel history in a Middle East country, the patient decided to seek consultation early as part of his desire to know his condition and be given immediate treatment.

The patient was also reported to have travelled to another undisclosed country after his stay in the Middle East country, prior to his arrival here.

The name of the airline company that ferried him was also not disclosed although contact tracing was done among his co-passengers.

The patient began only experiencing symptoms of MERSCoV on his 14th day after arrival in the country.

The said period of two weeks is inclusive part of the incubation period for the MERSCoV to appear.

Upon the foreigner’s arrival in the country, the thermal scanner did not detect any fever, meaning the MERS virus in the patient was still inactive.

Having a high fever is one of the symptoms that can lead to suspicion of MERSCoV, especially among those coming from countries where MERSCoV originated and reported.

“Since the patient is young, his viral load is low, meaning there is a slim chance for him to infect others,” the DOH chief said.

She added that the DOH had also examined and monitored the companions of the patient.

One of them, a female, is currently confined and under observation also at the RITM when she was found to be suffering from cough, another sign of MERSCoV.

The results of confirmatory test on her will be revealed later, according to the DOH.

The other seven companions of the patient were advised to self-quarantine themselves wherein they will observe themselves if there will symptoms that will appear while the DOH monitoring team is tracking down their conditions everyday for signs of MERSCoV.

The DOH chief said that what is important for the public is to continue practicing proper hygiene, have adequate rest and balanced diet that can lead to good resistance.

The DOH further appealed for vigilance and public participation and cooperation in the early detection of MERSCoV and other infectious diseases, in contact-tracing and in filling up the yellow form by arriving passengers.

It likewise appealed for the public to respect the identity of the patients who will seek treatment so that they can freely and conveniently come forward without hesitation that they will suffer stigmatization.

The DOH chief also said that it is good that the patient is cooperative enough and has come forward for consultation upon suspicion of his having MERSCoV as a precautionary measure.

“Everyone of us has a significant role in fighting for MERSCoV,” the DOH chief said, stressing that coming forward and seeking early consultation, knowing what to do are good ways to prevent MERSCoV spread in the country.