SARS: Numbers down, but govt remains vigilant
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
As of Sunday, only three suspected Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) patients were being treated in hospitals across the country, but an official warned that it was too early to declare that the spread of the virus had passed its peak.
The latest figure followed the confirmation by Indonesian officials on Saturday that a British man with the country's only known probable case of SARS had flown to Hong Kong the day before, although he had been ordered to stay at his home in Indonesia for 10 to 14 days for monitoring purposes.
The figure, however, did not include one person with SARS-like symptoms, who had disappeared from her room in Sanglah hospital in Denpasar, Bali.
Indonesia has had no confirmed SARS cases so far.
The director for epidemiology surveillance, immunization and health at the Ministry of Health, Indriyono, said on Sunday that although the number of cumulative cases appeared to be declining, the government would continue its precautionary measures.
"As time goes by, and with better understanding of SARS, particularly among health officials, the government has been confident as to whether or not to declare a symptomatic individual as a probable SARS case, and (whether or not they) must be isolated. But this doesn't mean SARS cases have decreased in number or even that we have passed the worst," he told The Jakarta Post.
When SARS was declared a worldwide threat by the World Health Organization (WHO) on March 15, Indonesia started to report several cases that were suspected to be SARS.
On April 11, the number of suspected SARS patients receiving isolated treatment at hospitals reached eight, but a government verification team later declared that many of them were not infected with SARS and that they suffered from other illnesses.
Indriyono added that the government had no intention of easing its preventative measures against SARS, such as those at air and sea ports and hospitals, at least until mid-May.
"We don't know when SARS will be over. We are still monitoring the developments in Hong Kong and China, and will stay in touch with WHO until mid-May. If the disease continues to spread, we will maintain the present measures for another month," he said.
Meanwhile, microbiologist Amin Soebandrio at the University of Indonesia and Taufan Situmeang, a senior doctor at Siloam Gleneagles Hospital in Tangerang, Banten, said the hot climate and the housing system here may have made Indonesia relatively safe from a SARS outbreak.
"Indonesia is not like Singapore. Although the climate in Singapore is hot like here, many Singaporeans live in apartments, making it easy for the disease to spread through close contact with SARS-infected individuals," Amin told the Post.
Amin says that the coronavirus that causes the pneumonia-like disease could survive in hot climates for only between two to three hours, but could live longer in damp or cool climates.
Nevertheless, the two experts agreed that the government should not ease its preventative measures.
As of Sunday, SARS, which is fatal in about four percent of cases, had infected over 3,500 people in the world and had claimed over 200 lives.