WHO declares coronavirus outbreak a global emergency
The number of people reported infected with the novel coronavirus has now exceeded 7000 and is now larger than the number of cases reported in the SARS-outbreak 17 years ago. At the same time WHO is worried by the number of cases reported outside of China. Based on this the World Health Organisation has declared a global emergency on a press conference recently given in Geneva.
In Denmark, The National Health Authority is responsible for the preparedness response. Last week The National Health Authority established a national preparedness team in order to ensure that Denmark is ready to handle the situation, if a Danish citizen is infected with the novel coronavirus.
“Luckily we are on top of the situation. Our preparedness team is in place and everyone knows what their responsibility is. We have a well-functioning preparedness response in Denmark that is built on many years of experience and we have close collaboration between authorities”, informs Søren Brostrøm, Director General of The Danish Health Authority.
Last week The Danish Health Authority issued a guideline on handling the novel coronavirus for health personnel in Denmark. The guideline contains information on when a person should be considered at risk of being infected with the novel coronavirus and how the patient should be handled, both at the doctor’s office and at the hospital.
The guideline also informs health personnel about their notification duty if they suspect a person is infected with the novel coronavirus.
“It is still our assessment that the risk that an infected person arrives in Denmark is low. But in case it happens, the health care system is informed about the disease and how to handle it”, ascertains Søren Brostrøm, Director General of The Danish Health Authority.
If a person arriving in Denmark fulfills the specific criteria for risk of infection with the novel virus, the person will be tested and treated by specialists at either Skejby or Hvidovre Hospital, that both have specialized wards for infectious diseases. In Denmark Statens Serum Institut performs the tests for the novel coronavirus.
See questions and answers about the novel coronavirus here