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Specialists should be allowed to fight SARS

The SARS outbreak over the past few months has caused public panic and had a significant impact on society and the economy, as well as local hospitals. Due to the initial lack of awareness of the seriousness of the disease, our hospitals launched the anti-SARS fight with too much haste. As a result, several medical workers lost their lives and some medical institutions suffered from large-scale hospital SARS transmissions. This invisible enemy spread from place to place, causing great damage to Taiwan's medical system.

On the one hand, our hospitals have tried to maintain their regular medical services. On the other hand, they have made every effort to fight against this enemy. Under such circumstances, they may be willing but unable to handle both tasks. Also, many patients dare not seek help from hospitals due to their fear of being infected. The consequences of delayed treatment are as serious as those of the SARS outbreak.

There is a two-pronged strategies that can eliminate this fierce enemy.

First, officials must put into practice "border engagement" -- preventing the enemy from entering, while reducing the island's interaction with the SARS-affected areas. Passengers coming from those areas have to undergo a 10-day quarantine.

Second, we have to besiege and root out this enemy domestically. For the latter, the situation has gradually improved after the government offered its help to our medical institutions. But the virus is unlikely to completely disappear in a short time, and may stage a comeback.

The new SARS outbreak in Canada serves as an example. We have to prepare ourselves for a long-term battle, making all efforts to eliminate the contagion. However, regular hospitals can not accomplish this goal on their own. Therefore, the nation has to send out its most well-trained and -equipped medical teams to battle against the SARS virus.

I'm pleased to hear that the government is establishing 14 SARS-specialized hospitals across the nation, showing that the government is about to send its best SARS specialists to take up the battle. Still, in order to wipe out SARS and remove Taiwan from the World Health Organization's travel warning list, those SARS-only hospitals have to achieve the following tasks.

First, the hospitals have to function as the final stop for SARS. They should be able to deal with patients' various medical problems in order to prevent the disease from spreading. The complete range of hardware, doctors specialized in infections and critical care medicine, and other specialized medical workers all have to be stationed there.

Second, they have to establish emergency rooms responsible for examining possible SARS patients discovered in the temporary fever-detection stations located nationwide -- so that they will not remain at those screening stations and spread the disease further.

Third, they have to provide necessary outpatient services in an effort to trace recovered SARS patients after they are discharged from the hospitals.

At a time when the epidemic is coming under control, the nation's medical system should begin to resume its original function and take good care of the health of the public -- so that they will not be afraid of going to hospital or delay their medial treatment. After the SARS-only hospitals are established, other regular hospitals should move out SARS patients from their isolation wards to resume their original duties.

Taiwan did not have any SARS-only hospitals when the disease first broke out locally. Hence, regular hospitals took up the battle hastily and consequently suffered serious casualties. The epidemic is beginning to come under control, and now it's time for the nation's SARS-specialized teams to take up the battle.

Chu Shu-hsun is the director of the Far Eastern Memorial Hospital. TRANSLATED BY EDDY CHANG
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