Govt urged to brief Middle East-bound OFWs about MERS-CoV

A non-government organization has urged the government to include the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) coronavirus in the topics discussed during pre-departure orientation seminars for overseas Filipino workers, particularly those bound for the Middle East.

In a statement Monday, the Blas F. Ople Policy Center said the Department of Health and the Department of Labor and Employment should coordinate with recruitment and travel industries for the inclusion of the MERS-CoV in pre-departure orientation seminars (PDOS).

“It would be prudent to include information about MERS-CoV in their pre-departure seminars as a mandatory topic,” said Susan Ople, the policy center's head.

“The government can brief all licensed recruitment agency owners and PDOS providers specializing in the Middle East market about MERS-CoV so that such information can be incorporated in the mandatory pre-departure briefings for OFWs,” she added.

Ople noted that some 3,000 to 4,000 Filipinos leave the country every day, most of them bound for the Middle East, where the virus is believed to have originated from.

Ople said these briefings could be made to prioritize OFWs working in the medical industry as many Filipinos in the Middle East are employed as nurses.

Since there is no cure yet for the virus, Ople said spreading information is the best preventive measure against it.

Citing the World Health Organization (WHO), the Blas Ople Center said there have been 243 infected patients and 93 fatalities due to the virus since March 2012.

Last Saturday, a male Filipino nurse from the Middle East who was initially diagnosed to be infected with MERS-CoV was declared negative for the virus after tests. — Andrei Medina/KBK, GMA News

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