Lee: The CNN report, based on the advice of the US Centers for Disease Control, said the hospital should not send patients to different places, but should concentrate them in a single facility to prevent further spread. Well, the American CDC's method is the traditional way of preventing the spread of infection. But the Hoping Hospital was an exception, as the hospital had gross internal infection and there was no classification within the hospital to separate the infected patients from the healthy ones. Sending patients away to different hospitals is a way to reduce the further spread of SARS, which might otherwise be aggravated.
TT: Are the central and local governments open-minded enough to communicate with each other in laying out plans to contain the disease?
Lee: At the beginning, the communication between the two levels of government was difficult. We could see that the Taipei City Government was attempting to defy the Cabinet-level Department of Health. But now the situation has improved as both parties realized that only cooperation could help bring down the epidemic.
TT: As a candidate for Taipei City mayor last year, how do you respond to those who say the development of SARS in Taipei would have been different if you had been elected mayor? What you would have done differently?
Lee: I can't comment on this question, because I am the person involved. In hindsight, we can see that there were indeed certain things that could have been done differently, including giving training lectures to medical staff about SARS, as well as giving more prevention information to the public.
TT: Have Taiwan's chances of entering the World Health Organization (WHO) been improved as a result of the SARS outbreak?
Lee: Support from the US, Japan and Europe for Taiwan's bid to become an observer of the World Health Assembly has increased year by year. Japanese Minister of Health, Labor and Welfare Chikara Sakaguchi even showed strong support on May 11 for Taiwan's bid to join the WHA as an observer. This shows a significant improvement in the intensity and form expressed by our allies to support Taiwan's WHO bid. The wording and phrasing used by our allies have improved year by year, and this is an important index with which to gauge their support for Taiwan.
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