SAUDI ARABIA: Tighter measures in hospitals to tacke MERS increase in Saudi Arabia

Record ID: 189546

  • Title: SAUDI ARABIA: Tighter measures in hospitals to tacke MERS increase in Saudi Arabia
  • Date: 29th October 2014
  • Summary: RIYADH, SAUDI ARABIA (OCTOBER 29, 2014) (REUTERS) UNDERSECRETARY OF THE MINISTRY OF HEALTH FOR PUBLIC HEALTH, ABDULAZIZ BIN SAEED, DISCUSSING WITH EMPLOYEE SAEED HOLDING PAPERS SHOWING DIAGRAM (SOUNDBITE) (English) UNDERSECRETARY OF THE MINISTRY OF HEALTH FOR PUBLIC HEALTH, ABDULAZIZ BIN SAEED, SAYING: "Each hospital has its own cases, which have been introduced by what we call a primary case, which very likely, we are believing that the index cases were in contact to animals." VARIOUS OF SAEED EXPLAINING DIAGRAM WITH INFORMATION ABOUT INFECTED CASES (SOUNDBITE) (English) UNDERSECRETARY OF THE MINISTRY OF HEALTH FOR PUBLIC HEALTH, ABDULAZIZ BIN SAEED, SAYING: "It was very clear for us, there was over crowdedness in one of the reno-dialysis in one of the hospitals, which has been overpopulated by patients who are really at high risk of contracting the infection." SAUDI FLAG AND HEALTH MINISTRY LOGO (SOUNDBITE) (English) UNDERSECRETARY OF THE MINISTRY OF HEALTH FOR PUBLIC HEALTH, ABDULAZIZ BIN SAEED, SAYING: "The secret here of success is not to prevent the cases to be introduced to the community. It's going to continue to be introduced into the community. The success is to control the transmission within health facilities. If you look at the cases, four of them are primary cases, which could be attributed to the community. However, 16 cases were attributed to health facilities." EXTERIOR OF SAUDI MINISTRY OF HEALTH HEADQUARTERS
  • Embargoed: 13th November 2014 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Saudi Arabia
  • Country: Saudi Arabia
  • Topics: Health
  • Reuters ID: LVA277L32GHFOQBE18WJMNZ29RKC
  • Story Text: Health facilities were the source of most contagions during a new spike in cases of the Middle Eastern Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) in Saudi Arabia, a health official said on Wednsday (October 29).
    Saudi Arabia's Health Ministry on Monday (October 27) urged residents of the world's top oil exporter to renew precautions against MERS after the recent rise in cases of the disease since early September.
    The Health Ministry announced a total of 23 confirmed new cases this month of the virus, which causes coughing, fever and sometimes fatal pneumonia. In addition to the 12 cases detected in September, this brings the total number in the kingdom to 777 since it was identified in 2012, of which 331 died.
    Undersecrretary of the Ministry of Health Abdulaziz bid Saeed said hospitals with a higher risk of contagion among patients were overcrowed.
    "It was very clear for us, there was over crowdedness in one of the reno-dialysis in one of the hospitals, which has been overpopulated by patients who are really at high risk of contracting the infection," Saeed said.
    The increase in cases in October has been evident across the country, Health Ministry figures show, with seven confirmed cases in Riyadh, six in Mecca, five in Taif and one each in Medina, al-Jouf, Najran, Hofuf and Jubail. Three of the new cases were health workers.
    Scientists are not sure of the origin of the virus, but several studies have linked it to camels and some experts think it is being passed to humans through close physical contact or through the consumption of camel meat or camel milk.
    The disease can then spread between people, and the largest previous outbreaks, including one in Jeddah in April and May that infected hundreds, have been linked to poor infection control procedures in hospitals.
    Saeed said the most efficient way of tackling the recent rise is to implement scricter controls in helath facilities, the main source of contagion.
    "The secret here of success is not to prevent the cases to be introduced to the community. It's going to continue to be introduced into the community. The success is to control the transmission within health facilities. If you look at the cases, four of them are primary cases, which could be attributed to the community. However, 16 cases were attributed to health facilities," he said.
    Other cases have been found elsewhere in the Middle East, in European countries, the Far East and in the United States, but many of those were found in people who had traveled in Saudi Arabia.
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