The Taipei City Hospital’s Renai Branch on Friday reported an outbreak of influenza type A, saying that it had confirmed 13 cases.
Of 19 people initially suspected to have contracted the virus, two were found to be suffering from sinusitis, but anti-viral drugs were administered to the remaining 17, hospital director Hsiao Sheng-huang (蕭勝煌) said.
Following rapid influenza diagnostic tests, 13 people were confirmed with influenza type A, seven of whom were hospitalized patients, while two caregivers and four hospital staff have also contracted the virus, he said.
The cases were first discovered on the western side of the hospital’s sixth floor on Monday, so the hospital quarantined those affected and reported its findings to the Taipei Department of Health, hospital chief medical officer Chen Shu-ting (陳淑廷) said.
“We conducted quarantine and control measures, including mandatory hand-washing and wearing of facial masks and also administered drugs, so the situation was under control,” Hsiao said.
“Although we always stress the importance of wearing masks and washing hands, it was difficult to regulate family members coming in and out,” he said.
The western side of the sixth floor is for rehabilitating patients, but physical therapy sessions are on the first floor, so patients, family members and healthcare staff often move in and out of the area, he said.
No further infections were discovered after the hospital took measures to prevent the virus from spreading and all 19 patients have now recovered from their fevers, he said.
The virus is mainly spread via droplet transmission and infected people — even if they are not yet showing symptoms — can spread the virus just by talking to other people, Taipei Division for Disease Control and Prevention official Huang Chi-ching (黃繼慶) said.
“We always suggest people wear facial masks when visiting a hospital,” he said. “Viruses spread more quickly than doctors can diagnose infections and administer antiviral drugs to stem their spread.”
NUMBERS IMBALANCE: More than 4 million Taiwanese have visited China this year, while only about half a million Chinese have visited here Beijing has yet to respond to Taiwan’s requests for negotiation over matters related to the recovery of cross-strait tourism, the Tourism Administration said yesterday. Taiwan’s tourism authority issued the statement after Chinese-language daily the China Times reported yesterday that the government’s policy of banning group tours to China does not stop Taiwanese from visiting the country. As of October, more than 4.2 million had traveled to China this year, exceeding last year. Beijing estimated the number of Taiwanese tourists in China could reach 4.5 million this year. By contrast, only 500,000 Chinese tourists are expected in Taiwan, the report said. The report
SHIPS, TRAINS AND AUTOMOBILES: The ministry has announced changes to varied transportation industries taking effect soon, with a number of effects for passengers Beginning next month, the post office is canceling signature upon delivery and written inquiry services for international registered small packets in accordance with the new policy of the Universal Postal Union, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications said yesterday. The new policy does not apply to packets that are to be delivered to China, the ministry said. Senders of international registered small packets would receive a NT$10 rebate on postage if the packets are sent from Jan. 1 to March 31, it added. The ministry said that three other policies are also scheduled to take effect next month. International cruise ship operators
Temperatures are forecast to drop steadily as a continental cold air mass moves across Taiwan, with some areas also likely to see heavy rainfall, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. From today through early tomorrow, a cold air mass would keep temperatures low across central and northern Taiwan, and the eastern half of Taiwan proper, with isolated brief showers forecast along Keelung’s north coast, Taipei and New Taipei City’s mountainous areas and eastern Taiwan, it said. Lows of 11°C to 15°C are forecast in central and northern Taiwan, Yilan County, and the outlying Kinmen and Lienchiang (Matsu) counties, and 14°C to 17°C
STEERING FAILURE: The first boat of its class is experiencing teething issues as it readies for acceptance by the navy, according to a recent story about rudder failure The Hai Kun (海鯤), the nation’s first locally built submarine, allegedly suffered a total failure of stern hydraulic systems during the second round of sea acceptance trials on June 26, and sailors were forced to manually operate the X-rudder to turn the submarine and return to port, news Web site Mirror Daily reported yesterday. The report said that tugboats following the Hai Kun assisted the submarine in avoiding collisions with other ships due to the X-rudder malfunctioning. At the time of the report, the submarine had completed its trials and was scheduled to begin diving and surfacing tests in shallow areas. The X-rudder,
RSS