We can expect to see not just protectionism, but also
racism exploiting superbug issues.
Already Scandinavian hospitals are very wary of British patients, and
of their own returning nationals carrying disease into their
hospitals.
It does not hit the international media, because the complaints do not
appear in English language publications.
The problem of separating sensible and rational discrimination, for
medical reasons, from racist rabble rousing is going to inhibit
reporting and genuine scientific investigation.
The fact that Filipinos may be more vulnerable than Indonesians to
MRSA strongly supports the Gardiner Hypothesis for obvious reasons.
Mind you if you look back at history, enough scientists were always
either oblivious of or at the service of totalitarianism's worst
excesses.
It should not have come to this.
Britain's bent vets should have been called to account and struck off
years ago.
The RCVS bear a heavy share of the blame. They will have to be
abolished - and in disgrace too.
http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=446598&publicationSubCategoryId=202
Hong Kong Pinoys tagged 'superbug' carriers
By Marvin Sy Updated March 08, 2009 12:00 AM
MANILA, Philippines - Malacañang is looking into a report that
authorities in Hong Kong have tagged Filipinos as carriers of the
infectious methicilin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)
"superbug," a virulent strain that has emerged as a major health
threat, to see if this would warrant the filing of a diplomatic
protest against the Special Administrative Region of China.
Interviewed over state-run radio station dzRB, Press Secretary Cerge
Remonde took offense at the report, which was carried by the HK-based
free English newspaper The Standard last Feb. 25, which noted that
around 126,000 Filipinos in HK are 23 times more likely to be infected
by the superbug than the local Chinese populace.
The report cited figures reportedly coming from the Center for Health
Protection.
"They point out the infection is rare among Indonesian domestic
helpers, who number only about 3,000, less than their Filipino
counterparts," he said.
"The center's experts fear the disease could be getting carried here
from the Philippines, but authorities in Manila cannot supply data for
MRSA superbug rates," the report added.
The report also quoted Hong Kong University microbiologist Ho
Pak-leung as saying that the center had not seen the superbug in
Indonesian maids a year ago, "lending weight to the idea the bacteria
is carried from the Philippines."
"We are aware that Singapore, which has also hired a lot of Filipino
domestic helpers, faces the same problem," said the report, quoting
Ho.
Remonde said the report warrants close scrutiny as it involves the
dignity of Filipinos in general.
"I think we should take offense over that," he said.
An earlier controversy had implicated Filipino domestic helpers as
carriers of the deadly SARS virus and they were accused of bringing
the bacteria from the Philippines, but in actuality, SARS originated
from China.
"They should not treat Filipinos in this manner. We contribute a lot
to their economy too," Remonde said in Filipino.
After a review of the report is done, Remonde said the Philippine
government would seriously consider whether or not to file a
diplomatic protest.
Filipinos, according to Remonde, are very hygienic in nature and are
known to take baths even three times a day.
Several strains of the drug-resistant bacteria are generally harmless
to healthy people but can become lethal to hospital patients in
weakened conditions.
The MRSA bacteria slip into open wounds and through catheters or
ventilator tubes, typically causing pneumonia or bloodstream
infections.
