SARS
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Norm Ryder
- Posts: 118
- Joined: Wed Jan 29, 2003 9:10 pm
- Location: Canberra, Australia
SARS
joon
In Australia we're calling it "severe acute respiratory syndrome". "Severe acute" sounds like a tautology to me. I don't know how they're translating it to or from other languages.
But your question is almost two weeks old, so I hope somebody closer at home has answered it for you by now. And has told you how to keep away from it
Good luck.
Norm
In Australia we're calling it "severe acute respiratory syndrome". "Severe acute" sounds like a tautology to me. I don't know how they're translating it to or from other languages.
But your question is almost two weeks old, so I hope somebody closer at home has answered it for you by now. And has told you how to keep away from it
Good luck.
Norm
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Norm Ryder
- Posts: 118
- Joined: Wed Jan 29, 2003 9:10 pm
- Location: Canberra, Australia
Celeste
I should have checked my on-line medical dictionary before going to print, shouldn't I. Yes, both those that I checked stress the "short and sudden" meaning of acute. The multilingual one includes the word "severe" in its second definition, but "severe" doesn't feature at all in the "seriously professional" looking one "prepared by doctors"!
Maybe you've done some nursing training along the way
And thanks for all your other contributions to this forum.
Norm
I should have checked my on-line medical dictionary before going to print, shouldn't I. Yes, both those that I checked stress the "short and sudden" meaning of acute. The multilingual one includes the word "severe" in its second definition, but "severe" doesn't feature at all in the "seriously professional" looking one "prepared by doctors"!
Maybe you've done some nursing training along the way
And thanks for all your other contributions to this forum.
Norm
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jly_eslcafe
- Posts: 19
- Joined: Wed Apr 02, 2003 3:47 am
- Location: Oz
I teach in Guangdong province in China, and I just hope I can soon talk the headmaster into buying handsoap for all the school's bathrooms. They have decided to fight SARS with preventative Chinese medicine, but are unwilling to provide soap for the kids to wash thier hands. Is anyone else noticing similar problems? Heck, is anyone else STILL teaching in high-risk SARS areas?
Phil
Phil
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jly_eslcafe
- Posts: 19
- Joined: Wed Apr 02, 2003 3:47 am
- Location: Oz
Toyboatt,
China is always an experience - that's why I like it so much!
Originally I was going to teach in Guang Zhou too, but I have put it on hold - SARS being one of the reason. Do you feel at danger being in the midst of it? Also have you heard of Shen Zhen Technical College?
Is this thread going off the point of the initial topic?
~ Jennifer
China is always an experience - that's why I like it so much!
Originally I was going to teach in Guang Zhou too, but I have put it on hold - SARS being one of the reason. Do you feel at danger being in the midst of it? Also have you heard of Shen Zhen Technical College?
Is this thread going off the point of the initial topic?
~ Jennifer
Guangzhou or Shenzhen - what's the difference? I live in between, and it appears that the problem is getting worse while people don't seem to notice except by token acknowledgment in the form of wearing face masks and avoiding to come within spitting distance of each other.
If only the spitting stopped!
Holidays have been cancelled in some schools but not in ours. Still other kids have to stay on campus during their weekends and during the coming holidays of FIrst of May (normally one week off, now only 5 days including the weekend).
The Shenzhen Polytechnic reportedly had an American teacher falling victim to SARS. He died two weeks ago.
If only the spitting stopped!
Holidays have been cancelled in some schools but not in ours. Still other kids have to stay on campus during their weekends and during the coming holidays of FIrst of May (normally one week off, now only 5 days including the weekend).
The Shenzhen Polytechnic reportedly had an American teacher falling victim to SARS. He died two weeks ago.
Sars has been referred to in various media reports as an "epidemic".
A few hundred deaths (that we know of), and a few thousand sufferers out of a combined population of ?tens of millions? in the affected areas hardly seems like an epidemic.
Is this a mis-use of the english language, or should I have brought my dictionary with me?
A few hundred deaths (that we know of), and a few thousand sufferers out of a combined population of ?tens of millions? in the affected areas hardly seems like an epidemic.
Is this a mis-use of the english language, or should I have brought my dictionary with me?
In my view it is irrelevant whether the term 'epidemic' is more correctly used when talking about 'millions' or 'tens of thousands'; we need to correlate such numbers with the population total.
Even if the sufferers and carriers combined number 1% (only?) of any given total population, we are faced here with a dangerous new condition.
You can also claim that AIDS is not an epidemic. Yet we all have reason to be on our guard.
THere still is no known cure for SARS.
It is one more pneumonia in a list of pneumonias that usually kill 1 out of 3 victms.
The SARS virus seems to kill young and old.
And the SARS virus may have crossed the host species barrier from chicken to other fowl to humans.
What's more, Dr. Preiser of the WHO thinks there are certain high-riskn people in any population that can not as yet be identified. They act as superspreaders, meaning that one of these people, once infected, can infect dozens of others, while others may stop the virus from spreading to other humans.
One of these superspreaders was a Guangdong physician who went to HK a seemingly healthy man, developed the disease within days and passed it on to several more guests in the Metropole Hotel. The doctor himself later died. A total of 51 people were infected by him in Hong Kong.
There also is considerable confusion as to how the disease spreads. Obviously, spitting everywhere as is done in mainland China will help the virus survive.
A question I have not seen addressed yet: Are there any ethnic groups more susceptible of developing the full-blown symptoms than others?
Note that the disease has spread throughout the world, especially throughout Chinatowns in the West; whereas Canada (high percentage of Chinese immigrants) and Hong Kong have reported deaths, Germany and France have been reporting the same numbers of sick patients, with nobody so far dying (in over two weeks that I have been watching the stats).
Here in China, you can say "I feel safe", not knowing if your workmate(s) or students have the disease. Many are now cloistered up in their campuses. Hotels have closed down. Roadblocks have been set up to monitor the flow of traffic and migrants.
Schools check the temperature of their students and staff.
There has been a riot near Tianjin of local villagers in protest over the setting-up of a quarantine station for SARS patients!
Hysterics, certainly, but why?
Because our dear omniscient mainland government had kept its head in the sand and claimed this was a "controlled" problem before finally owning up to a malaise.
It's the same malaise that you can witness on just about anything - never accepting outsiders' opinions on the backwardness of this country. Face value is more important than human lives!
That's why they deserve the international fall-out!
We had for years, nay, decades, the same attitude vis-a-vis AIDS.
To this day, Chinese are superstitious on account of who is a potential AIDS carrier: It always is the outsider!
IT's a superiority thing!
Even if the sufferers and carriers combined number 1% (only?) of any given total population, we are faced here with a dangerous new condition.
You can also claim that AIDS is not an epidemic. Yet we all have reason to be on our guard.
THere still is no known cure for SARS.
It is one more pneumonia in a list of pneumonias that usually kill 1 out of 3 victms.
The SARS virus seems to kill young and old.
And the SARS virus may have crossed the host species barrier from chicken to other fowl to humans.
What's more, Dr. Preiser of the WHO thinks there are certain high-riskn people in any population that can not as yet be identified. They act as superspreaders, meaning that one of these people, once infected, can infect dozens of others, while others may stop the virus from spreading to other humans.
One of these superspreaders was a Guangdong physician who went to HK a seemingly healthy man, developed the disease within days and passed it on to several more guests in the Metropole Hotel. The doctor himself later died. A total of 51 people were infected by him in Hong Kong.
There also is considerable confusion as to how the disease spreads. Obviously, spitting everywhere as is done in mainland China will help the virus survive.
A question I have not seen addressed yet: Are there any ethnic groups more susceptible of developing the full-blown symptoms than others?
Note that the disease has spread throughout the world, especially throughout Chinatowns in the West; whereas Canada (high percentage of Chinese immigrants) and Hong Kong have reported deaths, Germany and France have been reporting the same numbers of sick patients, with nobody so far dying (in over two weeks that I have been watching the stats).
Here in China, you can say "I feel safe", not knowing if your workmate(s) or students have the disease. Many are now cloistered up in their campuses. Hotels have closed down. Roadblocks have been set up to monitor the flow of traffic and migrants.
Schools check the temperature of their students and staff.
There has been a riot near Tianjin of local villagers in protest over the setting-up of a quarantine station for SARS patients!
Hysterics, certainly, but why?
Because our dear omniscient mainland government had kept its head in the sand and claimed this was a "controlled" problem before finally owning up to a malaise.
It's the same malaise that you can witness on just about anything - never accepting outsiders' opinions on the backwardness of this country. Face value is more important than human lives!
That's why they deserve the international fall-out!
We had for years, nay, decades, the same attitude vis-a-vis AIDS.
To this day, Chinese are superstitious on account of who is a potential AIDS carrier: It always is the outsider!
IT's a superiority thing!
"A question I have not seen addressed yet: Are there any ethnic groups more susceptible of developing the full-blown symptoms than others?"
I don't believe so, Roger.
Although Toronto does have a large Chinese population, and the disease was traced to a traveller that flew from Hong Kong to Toronto, most of the 24 deaths have been middle-aged to senior caucasians. I think it's just the source of the disease that might give an illusion that it could be linked more susceptible to (Asian) ethnicity.
I happen to live in Canada and the SARS scenario has finally come close to an end here!
I don't believe so, Roger.
Although Toronto does have a large Chinese population, and the disease was traced to a traveller that flew from Hong Kong to Toronto, most of the 24 deaths have been middle-aged to senior caucasians. I think it's just the source of the disease that might give an illusion that it could be linked more susceptible to (Asian) ethnicity.
I happen to live in Canada and the SARS scenario has finally come close to an end here!
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jly_eslcafe
- Posts: 19
- Joined: Wed Apr 02, 2003 3:47 am
- Location: Oz
Guys,
Not sure if it is the appropriate place to discuss the SARS issue @ this forum. Hehehhee... anyway here is my opinion.
I think SARS is indeed a serious issue. However, SARS is a virus - thus if you think about it - it is really part of life. We, in Oz (Australia) have reports of flu viruses every year, esp. during winter. And we get deaths as a result too.
The difference being, usually we have information and vaccination against most of these viruses, ie. usually the elderly and young children are advise to be vaccinated just before winter - free of charge. With SARS, the affect has been quite immediate and the media profile has been quite high.
While I think we all must be careful, I think the worst thing is the SARS hysteria and hype. Besides the economic damage it has cause, I think the affect on the world socially are worse. People are suspicious of one another. In a place like Hong Kong, people are already protective as it is - with SARS, they are more suspicious than ever. And people are nervous about going out - you see many empty streets, which is rare anywhere in Asia really.
I don't have any constructive ideas on how this SARS can be addressed. I guess the furthest we can get is controlling it. One thing is for the popluation to just remain calm. Yes be careful, but don't go hysterical - it is all just part of life. Maybe if it wasn't SARS, it would be another virus?
I hope for everyone's sake that SARS is controlled soon.
~ Jennifer
Not sure if it is the appropriate place to discuss the SARS issue @ this forum. Hehehhee... anyway here is my opinion.
I think SARS is indeed a serious issue. However, SARS is a virus - thus if you think about it - it is really part of life. We, in Oz (Australia) have reports of flu viruses every year, esp. during winter. And we get deaths as a result too.
The difference being, usually we have information and vaccination against most of these viruses, ie. usually the elderly and young children are advise to be vaccinated just before winter - free of charge. With SARS, the affect has been quite immediate and the media profile has been quite high.
While I think we all must be careful, I think the worst thing is the SARS hysteria and hype. Besides the economic damage it has cause, I think the affect on the world socially are worse. People are suspicious of one another. In a place like Hong Kong, people are already protective as it is - with SARS, they are more suspicious than ever. And people are nervous about going out - you see many empty streets, which is rare anywhere in Asia really.
I don't have any constructive ideas on how this SARS can be addressed. I guess the furthest we can get is controlling it. One thing is for the popluation to just remain calm. Yes be careful, but don't go hysterical - it is all just part of life. Maybe if it wasn't SARS, it would be another virus?
I hope for everyone's sake that SARS is controlled soon.
~ Jennifer