The team lead for the WHO-China joint mission on novel coronavirus Bruce Aylward
on Tuesday praised China’s agile disease containment effort at a press conference in
Geneva, Switzerland, saying this has not only largely reduced the new infections in
the country, but also earned valuable time and offered experiences for other countries
to get prepared.
Aylward introduced the mission’s trip to China, shared China’s experiences in
combating the virus, and made suggestions on global epidemic control.
The WHO-China joint mission on novel coronavirus consists of 25 Chinese and
foreign experts who went for field investigations to Beijing, Guangdong, Sichuan and
Hubei during their 9-day stay in China. They conducted comprehensive and in-depth
investigation into the epidemic situations, control measures, treatment, community-
level prevention and scientific research in the country and relevant provinces, and
submitted a report to the Chinese government and WHO.
Aylward said China has made remarkable achievements in combating the virus, with a
sharp drop in the number of new cases of infection and patients in severe and critical
conditions, which may have saved hundreds of thousands of people from infection.
According to the general law of epidemiology, said the WHO official, pointing to
graphics of the epidemic statistics in China, there is always a rapid growth of cases
after the outbreak of epidemics such as the novel coronavirus pneumonia. However,
experts believe that China’s intervention has obviously changed the curves on the
graphics. Every difference and every line represents a powerful decision by
policymakers and tremendous efforts benefiting a large number of Chinese people, he
said.
At the press conference, Aylward shared China’s effective approaches to contain the
epidemic, in particular its mobilization and science-based measures. He believes that
China’s strong mobilization and execution, as well as its people’s devotion and
optimism have strongly facilitated the implementation of control measures.
"They are using big data, artificial intelligence (AI) in places," Aylward said, adding
that the country has also established fever clinics and online diagnosis systems.
Besides, QR code has also been used as passes that indicate citizens’ health
conditions.
Sharing what he saw in China, Aylward introduced that some Chinese medical staff
working on the frontline even dropped off in the meetings with the joint mission
because of the exhausting work. He was also impressed by the medical teams across
the country that entered Hubei for assistance taking personal protective equipment
and medical devices, with some hospitals even being taken over, which is
unimaginable in other countries.
He used “ghost town” to describe Wuhan as citizens stayed at home to contain the
spread of the virus. “But behind every window in every skyscraper there are people
co-operating with this response,” Aylward said, adding that China has demonstrated
phenomenal collective action and cooperation spirit.
Every person has a sense that they're mobilized like in a war against the virus and
they are organized, he said.
According to a data model offered by WHO’s partner experts, the measures taken by
China to contain the flow of the people have slowed the spread the virus by 2 to 3
days in China, and 2 to 3 weeks in other parts of the world.
The novel coronavirus pneumonia is affecting many places around the world, and
rapid response is called for to prevent the disease from becoming a pandemic,
Aylward said, adding that China’s prevention and control proved that the epidemic is
controllable with strict measures.
Aylward suggested that countries evaluate potential risks based on scientific
approaches, prepare hospital beds, quarantine facilities, ICUs and test labs in advance,
and conduct training for personnel for quick response. Besides, he also urged
countries to pay attention to the spread of information and enhance communication
with China for experiences, and called for cooperation from the public.
