The mysterious death of a Hualien couple in mid-January has worried Taiwan for the past three weeks and exposed some alarming problems in our public health system. Many people are now panicking over this case, and not without reason.
To begin with, the determination of the cause of death of the couple was far from a straightforward and reassuring process. At first, food poisoning was thought to be responsible. But when a large quantity of tellurium, a rare chemical element, was found in the husband's blood sample, local prosecutors suspected that the couple might had been poisoned in some other way. Rumors -- absurd though they were -- spread that the cause was, in fact, the Ebola virus until the Center for Disease Control (CDC) pointed the finger at hantavirus. But the CDC's finding was quickly challenged by the negative results of a sample test conducted by a US lab. The CDC then claimed that the samples it sent to the US lab might have been insufficient and promptly dismissed the media's skeptical questioning and said that they were 99 percent sure of their diagnosis.
The CDC's being less than cooperative with the media on what is clearly an issue of public interest has to be condemned. But more important is the shadow that now lies over that agency's professional competence. If it sought a second opinion, how could it fail to send adequate samples to facilitate the US lab test? And how could it so blithely dismiss the US results? Did the US lab think its samples were adequate? This mixture of negligence and high-handedness on the center's part has harmed its own credibility, and added fuel to the public's anxiety.
On the assumption that the Hualien couple did die from hantavirus infection, which can be spread through contact with contaminated rat feces or inhaling contaminated dust, killing rats has become a national pastime. Many of those who keep mice or rats as pets at home are anxious to send their pets for virus tests and some have dumped their pets for fear of being infected.
Only now do we know that five years ago investigations by the Department of Health and the National Defense Medical Center found that only three regions in Taiwan were "hantavirus-free." However, prior to this, few people had heard of the hantavirus or been informed of how to prevent infection.
Obviously, given the lack of concerted action and the failure to determine the cause of death accurately and quickly enough, the authorities concerned didn't have a full understanding of the hantavirus situation let alone alert the public where necessary. This suggests a lack of coordination and public education in our public health network. We cannot help but wonder whether hantavirus infections in the past may have been misdiagnosed due to this lack of information and awareness. Hence the public's shaky confidence in our national health system. What further adds to the public anxiety is the fact the hantavirus case reveals again the difficulty of keeping the public properly informed of public-health related issues without creating unnecessary and excessive panic.
The disarray following the recent release of two environmental surveys concerning contaminated fish and oysters is another case in point. In the last few days, suspected hantavirus infection has been reported in different parts of Taiwan, as fear of the virus has blanketed the island. In publishing such environmental and public health-related studies or research results, extra caution should be taken not just to ensure their accuracy but also to make sure that they are not easily misunderstood. Otherwise they may just instigate unnecessary public anxiety.
Meanwhile the government should establish a virus review commission to examine possible cases of infection, compile the results, and release the information.
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