Saudi Arabia - "Don't Worry, Be Happy" constant messaging from Saudi MoH - No coronavirus cases or any infectious diseases amoung the Hajj pilgrims

[sharon sanders]

Every day since the start of the Hajj there has been at least 1 article in a Saudi main stream news outlet that there have been no coronavirus cases or any infectious diseases amoung the pilgrims. It is clear and purposeful messaging.

There have been no new cases of coronavirus announced in Saudi Arabia since the start of the Hajj. The last 2 cases were announced on October 9 as deaths.



machine translation


In a press conference held Mona hospital emergency
"Al-Rabiah," declares the safety of Hajj and free from epidemic diseases and quarantine
Minister of Health - Rabiah - Rabiah
October 17, 2013 11:36


SPA - Mona
The Minister of Health, Dr. Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Rabiah safety pilgrimage this year 1434 AH and free from infectious diseases and quarantine, and pilgrims have thankfully health and wellness.
said the Minister of Health: It is a result of the misgivings and actions taken by the Ministry of Health, based on the results of field investigations , and after seeing the reports of committees health ministry, and illustrated by statistics and reports and indicators of safety pilgrimage this year; non-registration of any outbreak of epidemic diseases or quarantine between the pilgrims and the praise and gratitude be to Allah.
This came in a statement read by the Minister of Health Dr. Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Rabiah, in a press conference held hospital Mona emergency read as follows:
enforcement of the directives of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, and His Highness the Crown Prince and the Second Deputy Premier, may Allah Judge care of pilgrims and provide the best medical services to them to be able to perform Nskhm with ease.
Proceeding from the keenness of the Ministry of Health for the safety of pilgrims has mobilized the ministry of all potential human, material and technology to deliver health services at all levels of preventive, curative and emergency and awareness.
Based on that has taken the Ministry of Health set of precautions and preparations and procedures in Hajj season this year (1434 AH), which was as follows:
First, the National Committee of Scientific for Infectious Diseases, which includes a selection of doctors consultants in infectious diseases and public health and family medicine and community from various health sectors in the Kingdom develop policies preventive action for infectious diseases of concern and health requirements to be availability in the next pilgrimage, and periodically updated to keep up with the changes and global developments.
Secondly raise preparedness towards emergency and developments relating to all diseases, especially HIV Corona, and strengthen procedures epidemiological surveillance and prevention of this virus and other diseases.
Thirdly application of health requirements for Hajj season this year All pilgrims, including procedures for HIV Koruna and intensification of epidemiological surveillance of early land, sea and air and through the centers of health monitoring.
Fourth provide all laboratory equipment and materials operational work of all analyzes and laboratory tests required for all viruses and vectors and pathogens, where he was a program sampling standard and the use of Devices Laboratory high-tech, and the provision of blood and blood products, and processing laboratories ministry devices and solutions and materials needed to detect virus Koruna, intensifying teams survey epidemiological teams and Environmental Health to monitor food and water.
V. continue to develop health centers, and the development of therapeutic services such as sections and open-heart surgery and dialysis and endoscopy and critical care, laboratories, blood banks and that in Mecca and Medina and the holy sites and the city of King Abdullah Medical Mecca.
VI development of ambulance services, and providing hardware diagnostic and therapeutic modern treatment field; well as the application tracking system ambulances and directed to serve patients in need whereabouts.
As a result, the misgivings and actions taken by the Ministry of Health, based on the results of field investigations, and after seeing the reports of committees ministry of health, and illustrated by statistics and reports and indicators of safety pilgrimage this year; and non-registration of any outbreak of epidemic diseases or quarantine among the pilgrims, all praise and gratitude be to Allah.
it, it gives me great pleasure to announce the Commission's decision health safety Hajj this year 1434 AH / 2013 AD and is free of epidemic or quarantine.
fluidly Lord Almighty to preserve the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, and His Highness the Crown Prince and the Second Deputy Premier, and to make this country safe assured, and to accept pilgrims pilgrimage, and to repel the aggressors home they enjoy good health and wellness.

http://www.almowaten.net/?p=77402

 

[sharon sanders]

Re: Saudi Arabia - "Don't Worry, Be Happy" constant messaging from Saudi MoH - No coronavirus cases or any infectious diseases amoung the Hajj pilgrims

Sunday, 20 October 2013

MERS-CoV cases begin to tick over again after the Hajj....but isn't unrelated. Right?


So by all account Hajj2013 was a very successful event. A lot of lifelong wishes may have been fulfilled and the event went off without any apparent major hitch. A huge undertaking on many fronts.

During the Hajj it was hard to avoid seeing headlines like...

No cases of MERS virus among pilgrims so far​

and my particular favourite...

No infectious disease found​

At all. None. Not even bad influenza like illness. No coughs or colds among 2,000,000 people gathered together; 1,300,000 having at some level, shared transportation into the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA)?

Seriously?

That second quote makes me realise just how important it was for the KSA ministry of health to control this aspect of the Hajj's message; no MERS-CoV disease here. So important, that the message was, to say the least, a little heavy handed.

But now, coinciding with the Hajj ending, we see MERS-CoV detections popping up (3 in 3-days). It's very hard to take seriously the MERS-message. Rest assured we're told, those cases are not at all linked to the Hajj - no travel to that region (now so specific that we are told there is no travel outside of Riaydh) in the previous 14-days. Ironic how that longer incubation period is useful in these happy reports, but not remembered in others, such as when the press note:

Saudi Hajj ends successfully with no reports of MERS virus​

<table class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Click to enlarge. This graph is from September - highlights a similar case
reporting lull around umrah which then climbed rapidly and steadily
immediately afterwards.</td></tr> </tbody></table> The (longest) 14-day incubation period means we're not out of the woods yet (see my earlier post on timelines).

Maybe we'll see no new cases among any of the pilgrims. Cool. I doubt that. We have seen 7-day or more breaks in reporting of new MERS-cases before, so this past week is not "out of character". Time will tell, especially from now on for a week or so. Watch that curve closely.

I still wish we could lay off the "everything is fine here right now" message, and instead tell us what's happening to find the host or what testing is being done among those who are not severely ill (take a look at China and H7N9 - include MERS-CoV in your regular respiratory virus testing panel for a little while and see what comes of it). That would be treating us a little less like we are so easily distracted by shiny baubles.
Posted by Ian M Mackay

 

[sharon sanders]

Re: Saudi Arabia - "Don't Worry, Be Happy" constant messaging from Saudi MoH - No coronavirus cases or any infectious diseases amoung the Hajj pilgrims

snip from a Crof blog yesterday:


"Earlier this month I mentioned a report that places Saudi Arabia at #163 in the freedom of its press. This latest report tends to confirm that placement.
It offers nothing new?just the bare facts of the original MOH statement, minus the pious hopes for recovery. (Google Translate will give you a good sense of what the statement contains.) No reporter appears to have done any real legwork on this story, just as none have followed up on earlier MOH case announcements.

The report is padded with irrelevant factoids about finding the virus in bats, and with feel-good spin (likely premature) about the success of this year's Hajj. And in this it's par for the course in Saudi media coverage.

While writing this post, I see the MOH has just issued yet another MERS report?a 54-year-old citizen in Riyadh, with no recent travel history outside Riyadh and Eastern province, and the usual chronic medical conditions. When this story reaches the English-language Saudi media, it will get the same treatment and no follow-up.

And meanwhile the MOH English-language corona page seems frozen in time, listing 119 cases rather than 121 and no report more recent than September 27?over three weeks ago."

http://crofsblogs.typepad.com/h5n1/2013/10/mers-and-the-saudi-media-and-a-new-case.html