A disease in one country is a threat to another, ... the best chance to eradicate or contain a new infectious disease is when it emerges. |
As long as there are poultry outbreaks, people will be exposed to the virus and we can expect that people might get infected. |
As we have seen in the case of SARS, if there is a strong political commitment to tackling a health crisis, China can succeed in surmounting obstacles in a relatively short period of time, |
At the political level, the commitment is great. |
China has many challenges. China has a large poultry population of 14 billion and 70 percent of that poultry is being kept in the backyard. |
China's HIV infections have been linked to high-risk behavior. But now, sex work is moving it toward the general population. |
If there's evidence of human-to-human transmission, there will be small clusters. We are not at that stage. |
If you do not have the resources to deal with SARS, I think we're going for a very big outbreak in China. |
If you go to deal with human health issues only when it strikes people, I think you're already one step behind. You can never build a defense system if you only beef up the human side. |
If you put a message out there very strongly, then Chinese people might go into a panic, which is absolutely unnecessary, |
In the winter, the virus can survive longer outside its own host ... so we expect more cases, especially in this part of the world. |
It is hoped that the lessons of SARS have been taken to heart by the Chinese authorities, and that China's leadership in combating the H5N1 avian influenza outbreak will be an example to other countries affected at this time. |
It is very difficult to monitor the poultry in the backyards, |
Make no mistake, China's AIDS epidemic is growing. |
Now we dare to say that the SARS epidemic is over its peak period both globally and in China, ... This shows SARS can be contained -- this, despite the fact that we still have no vaccine or cure or diagnostic test. |