At least in part, the coronavirus epidemic spread quickly because of a failure to confront the facts at the apparent point of origin, in Wuhan, China. There is abundant hope that, having witnessed the delay by the government of China to deal with the outbreak, other nations, led by the U.S., are determined not to repeat that fatal error.
And in Hawaii, the state and its federal partners locally have implemented the right protections for the public, with a quarantine protocol in place before any confirmed case has been detected in the islands.
This doesn’t mean the public has no role in the maintenance of public health — a heightened attention to hygiene and sanitation is the right approach during flu season, in any case. But given the relatively low risk of exposure to coronavirus at this point, there is no cause for panic locally.
Coronavirus, now dubbed COVID-19 by the World Health Organization, is causing tensions to mount as the death toll passed the 1,000 mark globally. The overwhelming majority of the confirmed cases, roughly 99%, are in China.
As of Tuesday, there are 28 countries in which the disease has been diagnosed, including the United States, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. There have been 13 confirmed U.S. cases, but none in Hawaii.
One local man came home Monday after traveling to Hubei province in China, and is now isolated and under watch by the state Department of Health at a quarantine accommodation on base at Pearl Harbor.
On Tuesday the count of those now under 14-day mandatory quarantine in Hawaii rose to 36. These people, who had returned from other parts of China, are in “self-quarantine,” at home for the local residents or at hotel rooms for the visitors.
They are being tracked by phone calls, texts or videoconferences several times a day, according to the state Department of Health. These all seem the right degree of oversight, necessary to keep the exposure risk at bay.
Information is another key element of preventive medicine, especially for travelers. The CDC has escalated its alert level to a Warning, Level 3, with the advisory to avoid nonessential travel. Frequently checking with its health notices page would be wise (wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/notices/warning/novel-coronavirus-china).
Honolulu’s Daniel K. Inouye International Airport is one of 11 in the U.S. where flights from China are being directed, so it’s reasonable to see heightened concern among residents here.
The typical incubation period for this illness — the time between exposure and when symptoms appear — is 14 days. That’s relatively long, and it’s why it was able to spread quickly, with infected persons unaware they were contagious.
That means the need for caution will be needed for some time, as the progress of the outbreak plays out. The advisories from health officials stand, starting with their directives for residents to get a flu shot. This is good practice every season, since flu is a far more common risk and can be dangerous in its own right, especially for those with compromised health conditions.
Further, it will avoid confusion and needless worry, given that influenza has very similar symptoms as COVID-19. Managing these illnesses effectively also will avert overwhelming health-care systems that could be needed to deal with the examination of reports that potentially could be coronavirus cases.
There is cause for concern about possible impacts on Hawaii’s tourism economy, should this crisis in China be prolonged. But along with the continuing vigilance of health-care providers and the public paying attention to hygiene, keeping an air of calm is essential to healthy living, too.
