Chinese coronavirus
On Tuesday, January 28, 2020 I received the following e-mail from the Canadian Embassy in Tokyo about the Chinese coronavirus.
Dear Canadians,
You are receiving this email because you are registered with the Government of Canada’s Registration of Canadians Abroad service.
Confirmed cases of novel coronavirus have been reported in Japan. Symptoms have included fever, cough and difficulty breathing.
Chinese health authorities and the World Health Organization (WHO) have confirmed human-to-human transmission has occurred.
Some cases have been reported in countries other than China and several countries and territories have begun screening travelers arriving f rom Wuhan. Travellers from Wuhan may be asked about their travel history and health upon return to Canada.
Our travel advice is continuously reviewed and updated in order to keep Canadians informed when abroad. Please continue to check our travel advice and advisories website at https://travel.gc.ca/destinations/japan and https://traavel.gc.ca/destinations/china for updates. Under the Health tab of the travel advice and advisory for China, there is specific information relating to the Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) in china. A direct link to this information is provided here https://travel.gc.ca/travelling/advisories/pneumonia-china.
Recommendations for travelers:
Spending time in large crowds or crowded areas can increase your risk of getting sick.
Travellers should take precautions against respiratory and other illnesses while travelling, and seek medical attention if they become sick.
During your trip:
- Avoid high-risk areas such as farms, live animal markets, and areas where animals may be slaughtered.
- Avoid contact with animals (alive or dead).
- Avoid contact with sick people, especially if they have fever, cough, or difficulty breathing.
- Be aware of the local situation and follow local public health advice
Travellers are reminded to follow usual health precautions:
Wash your hands:
- Wash your hands often with soap under warm running water for at lest 20 seconds.
- Use alcohol-based hand sanitizer only if soap and water are not available.
- It’s a good idea to always keep some with you when you travel.
- Practice proper cough and sneeze etiquette:
- Cover your mouth and nose with your arm to reduce the spread of germs.
- If you use a tissue, dispose of it as soon as possible and wash your hands afterwards.
Monitor your health:
If you become sick when you are travelling or after you return, avoid contact with others except to see a health care professional. Tell them:
- your symptoms;
- where you have been travelling or living;
- if you have had direct contact with animals (for example: visited a live animal market) or close contact with a sick person.
If you feel sick during your flight to Canada or upon arrival, inform the flight attendant or a Canadian border services officer.
If you are no longer in Japan, send an email to [email protected].
Canadians in need of emergency consular assistance should call the Embassy at +81 3 5412 6200, or the Emergency Watch and Response Centre in Ottawa directly at +1 613 996 8885 (collect calls are accepted where available). An email can also be sent to [email protected].
We encourage you to stay connected with the latest travel advice and advisories, via the web at http://travel.gc.ca/mobile, and our RSS feeds at http://travel.gc.ca/rss. You may also follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/travelGoC and www. Twitter.com/CanEmbJapan or find us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/travelGoC and www.facebook.comCanEmbJapan.
Please share this important information with other Canadian nationals in your area.
Global Affairs Canada
I spoke to my mother (in Canada) on the phone on Sunday, January 26th (Saturday 25th her time) and she asked me how Japanese were reacting to the coronavirus situation, which she had been following in the news in Canada. At that time the story was certainly in the news, but not many people here were moved by it, and I had little to report. But that all changed within the next few days. During the week of January 27th - the last week of the month - the news grew exponentially worse - sort of like an out-of-control germ culture in a petri dish quickly overtaking the entire laboratory and killing all the scientists - and Tokyoites suddenly grew worried. It was like The Andromeda Strain in real life. Stores began selling out of the surgical face masks which Japanese famously habitually wear to retard germs. Flights to-and-from China were cancelled as governments began chartering aircraft to evacuate their citizens from infected areas of mainland China. Chinese tourists in Japan were discovered to be infected and to have infected their Japanese tour guides and bus drivers. Anti-Chinese hysteria quickly materialized.
The sudden sharp drop in the numbers of Chinese tourists has grave implications for the economy. The Abe government has ambitious plans to increase tourism - largely from China - for its potential economic boost. The coronavirus throws a spanner into their plans and even threatens the rosy expectations for the 2020 Summer Olympic Games this year.
I had a doctor’s appointment on the morning of Friday, January 31st. The hospital I go to is a major hospital in Tokyo called the National Center for Global Health and Medicine (“kokumin kokusai iriyo kenkyu senta”), one of only seven National Health Centers in Japan and home to a major infectious disease research facility. It is one of many hospitals that was designated as a treatment center for coronavirus patients. (It is the hospital where the occasional suspected Ebola patient is examined. Although no case of Ebola has ever been confirmed in Japan there have been three suspected carriers examined there in the past.) So that’s the kind of hospital it is - a major institution. Japanese patients commonly see their doctors at the outpatient clinics of big general hospitals, and I am the same. Plus, it’s an “international” hospital with many English-speaking staff. I go there once a month to see a specialist, and over the years I’ve been admitted four times for procedures.
As I approached the building at 8:00 a.m. on Friday 31st (I arrive early in order to have a blood test that would be ready by the time of my appointment) I noticed a television camera crew on the street taking video of the hospital. There was no reporter, only the camera crew. I thought they were either 1) taking some stock footage for the news, or 2) they were stationed there waiting for the arrival of ambulances bearing coronavirus patients for some exciting on-the-spot live action reporting. When I saw them, I thought I should take a picture of them for Facebook, but I didn’t because I thought it was rude to do so. But I regretted not taking the picture, so 25-minutes later, after my blood and urine tests were submitted, I went back outside to take their picture. But by that time, they had left. Rats!