EDITORIAL - The Ebola scare

As the Code White signal is hovering over Central Visayas, health authorities said they are making sure the region is ready for the Ebola with government and private hospitals raising the level of preparedness.

Under the code, Department of Health's operational centers are open 24 hours to monitor the Ebola. So far, there is no report of any returning Filipino or visiting foreigner being detected by the DOH with the disease upon entry.

While Ebola is now on a rampage in Africa, it is now causing a global scare with many countries outside the African continent recording several cases. In fact, the United States and Spain have already reported casualties.

Now, it appears that the Ebola, the scariest virus since the discovery of HIV 30 years ago, is well on its way to cause global outbreak. With no medical cure in sight, there is seemingly no stopping the virus from wreaking a worldwide havoc.

And the question that begs immediate answer is whether the country is really prepared for the dreaded virus. Raising the Code White does not necessarily mean the DOH is already capable of handling the disease.

Although preventive measures are already in place against Ebola, actual handling of the virus is certainly a different scenario because the Philippines has never experienced dealing with a virus as lethal as Ebola before.   

Even the United States, which has the world's most sophisticated medical facilities, has problems handling the Ebola. The past weeks, at least two nurses who are part of the team that treated a Liberian man - who died of Ebola - at a Texas hospital contracted the virus.  

Since Ebola has become a major global concern, the Philippines will always be in danger. We have to remember that millions of Filipinos are working overseas and they are always susceptible to Ebola once there is a global outbreak.

As a first line of defense, the country has facilities that would screen arriving passengers installed at international airports. However, it would be another story once the Ebola is finally detected in the country, as it would ultimately put to crucial test health authorities' capability to handle the virus.