Tourists under tight watch for SARS

Their host country is keeping an eye on them.

Foreign tourists entering the Philippines will be put under close watch as part of the government’s efforts to prevent the spread of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) here.

Tourism Secretary Richard Gordon said tourists will not be required to undergo quarantine, but the government has asked all hotels to closely monitor the condition of their foreign guests and immediately report suspected SARS cases.

"We have asked all hotels to monitor (foreign guests) closely and, if possible, know where they are going so the government could immediately detect SARS cases and take appropriate action," Gordon said.

However, Gordon said that not a single SARS case has been recorded in the country, despite the entry of foreign tourists and overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) from countries affected by SARS.

The outbreak of the mysterious pneumonia has claimed the lives of 53 people, including a Filipino domestic helper in Hong Kong and the World Health Organization (WHO) official who identified the SARS outbreak, and downed 1,300 people in various parts of Asia and Europe.

The WHO and the United States’ Centers for Disease Control (CDC) in Atlanta list SARS symptoms as: fevers of 38 degrees Celsius or higher, dry cough, colds, sore throat, shortness of breath, fever, myalgias (muscle pains), headaches and other influenza-like symptoms.

In some cases, these symptoms are followed by hypoxia (oxygen deficiency), pneumonia and, occasionally, acute respiratory distress and, in some cases, death.

Also called atypical pneumonia, SARS is potentially fatal and people manifesting SARS symptoms are advised to seek medical attention immediately.

Earlier, the Departments of Foreign Affairs, Health and Labor recommended voluntary domestic quarantine for Filipinos returning from countries affected by the spread of SARS, including China, Hong Kong and Singapore.

Returning OFWs, particularly those who may have been exposed to SARS patients, are asked to stay in their homes for seven days and immediately seek medical attention as soon as they suffer from fever or other symptoms of SARS.

"Due to SARS and the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, we have recorded a one percent decline in our daily international arrivals," Gordon said. Despite this, he expressed confidence that the reduction in tourist arrivals will be temporary.

Gordon’s remarks were made a day after a 41-year-old Filipina nurse who returned from Hong Kong was confined Friday for observation of flu-like symptoms in the isolation ward of the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM) in Alabang, Muntinlupa City.

On the same day, the remains of Adela Dalingay, 39, a domestic helper in Hong Kong who succumbed to SARS in the Chinese territory, were cremated in the Chinese territory.

Dalingay, who succumbed to SARS Monday last week, was the first Filipino to die of the mystery illness. Her ashes will be returned to the country on Monday.

The CDC listed the Philippines among countries reporting suspected SARS cases, along with China, Singapore, Canada, Hong Kong, Thailand and Vietnam.

Chief epidemiologist debunks SARS fears

Meanwhile, National Epidemiology Center (NEC) chief Consortia Quizon debunked fears that returning OFWs who survived their bouts of SARS infection may still be able to spread the disease here.

"SARS is most infectious only when one comes into direct contact with a victim experiencing a high fever," Quizon said.

Local officials in Pampanga plan to set up a medical quarantine holding area at the Diosdado Macapagal International Airport (DMIA) in Clark Field.

However, Quizon said the holding area is only for possible victims of a smallpox attack on OFWs who might have to be evacuated from the Middle East.

"We have alerted surveillance teams in all government hospitals nationwide to report any suspected SARS cases," Quizon said in a telephone interview. "The teams have been told to submit daily reports to the DOH, regardless of whether or not any suspected case has been noted."

According to Quizon, there is "a steady stream of people consulting doctors or getting confused over whether they have contracted SARS but, so far, so good. We have not found any victim yet in our country."

While the WHO has not issued any travel bans on countries identified as SARS outbreak areas, the government is urging Filipinos to refrain from making any unnecessary trips to these countries, Quizon said.

Those who cannot avoid making trips to China, Hong Kong and Singapore are asked to undergo voluntary quarantine at home for seven days after their arrival.

Southern Mindanao health officials also said there is no incidence of SARS infection in their area. DOH Region XI Director Dolores Castillo said the report that a Filipina OFW who returned to Davao City from Singapore was infected with SARS was untrue.

Castillo said this erroneous report has caused panic among residents in Davao City.

The OFW, who only intended to get her medical clearance from a local hospital, was released Saturday after undergoing a battery of tests that came up negative for SARS manifestations or symptoms.

"But, nevertheless, we still have to take necessary precautions, as SARS is a worldwide health threat," Castillo said. "We have to be vigilant all the time."

Health officials in Davao City are also concerned about the arrival today of a 42-man delegation from Mindanao that participated in the recent Philippine Solo Trade Exhibit in Shanghai, China. The trade exhibit delegation will be quarantined.

Castillo said a massive information campaign to educate the public on how to detect SARS symptoms will be mounted by local health officials in Region XI. — With Ding Cervantes, Edith Regalado and Jose Rodel Clapano