Nearly 1,400 foreign workers in Taipei were found to be carriers of parasitic diseases last year and thus potential threats in terms of spreading disease in their places of employment, according to the Taipei City Government's Bureau of Health.
According to the bureau, a total of 1,370 foreign helpers, most of whom work as domestic helpers in private households or at nursing homes, tested positive during health checks as carriers of intestinal parasitic diseases.
The bureau conducted health checks on more than 50,000 foreign workers in Taipei last year. Of the total, more than 1,400 people, or some 2.76 percent, were found to not meet the standards in terms of health and medical considerations.
A high of 92.6 percent of those who did not meet the standards, or a total of 1,370 helpers, tested positive for intestinal parasitic diseases, bureau officials said.
Lu Hui-chen, director of the Bureau of Health, called for private households which employ foreign domestic helpers to pay special attention to their employees.
She emphasized that the foreign helpers should be encouraged to stringently maintain a high level of personal sanitation, including frequently washing their hands and being extra careful when preparing food.
According to Lu, all foreign workers receive regular health checks in Taipei -- once every six months. If any are found to be carriers of serious contagious or fatal diseases, such as AIDS, they are forcibly repatriated.
Those who have intestinal parasites, however, are not forced to leave the country, as the condition is not an internationally-declared disease, Lu said, adding that the workers can continue to work in Taiwan as long as they continue to receive medical treatment.
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