[ad_1]
A healthcare worker takes a swab from a resident to get tested for the COVID-19 coronavirus in Qingdao, eastern Shandong province, on October 12, 2020. (Photo by STR / AFP) / China OUT
BEIJING, China – More than three million swabs have been taken in a matter of days in Qingdao, the Chinese port city where a minor coronavirus outbreak prompted a widespread health response.
Queues for testing stretched through Monday night across the eastern city, which detected six cases of the virus the day before but was quickly activated to prevent a broader outbreak.
In scenes that contrast with clumsy efforts by other nations to establish effective testing regimes, Qingdao health workers in protective gear set up sampling tents in neighborhoods, where parents brought young children to perform tests. tests.
Residents said on social media that community representatives informed them about their closest test stations, and local districts helped organize sample collection for mass testing.
“As of 8 am … our city has taken 3.08 million samples for nucleic tests, with 1.11 million results received,” the Qingdao health commission said in a statement Tuesday.
In addition to six people with symptoms, six asymptomatic cases have been detected so far.
The city stated that it aims to screen its entire population, about 9.4 million, within five days of detecting the first cases at a hospital on Sunday.
It was not immediately clear how quickly the results could be processed, although China has showcased its rapid testing ability during previous minor outbreaks.
The ruling Communist Party of China is desperate to show its ability to handle the pandemic to its citizens, as well as foreign audiences, after it emerged in the central city of Wuhan.
The country has recovered since the virus appeared late last year and forced widespread shutdowns that hit the world’s second-largest economy.
China is also desperate to be the first nation to produce a coronavirus vaccine, with several companies in end-stage trials.
For more news on the new coronavirus, click here.
What you need to know about the coronavirus.
For more information on COVID-19, call the DOH hotline: (02) 86517800 local 1149/1150.
The Inquirer Foundation supports our leaders in healthcare and still accepts donations in cash to be deposited into the Banco de Oro (BDO) checking account # 007960018860 or donate through PayMaya using this link .
Read next
Subscribe to INQUIRER PLUS to get access to The Philippine Daily Inquirer and more than 70 other titles, share up to 5 gadgets, listen to the news, download from 4am and share articles on social media. Call 896 6000.
For comments, complaints or inquiries, please contact us.
[ad_2]
