OFWs in South Korea Heighten Safety Measures to Ward off MERS-CoV

Wearing protective masks and minding hygienic measures, Filipino migrant workers in South Korea are not taking any chances as they strictly observe health advisories against the risk of MERS-CoV infection.

Labor Attaché Felicitas Q. Bay of Philippine Overseas Labor Office in South Korea yesterday reported to Secretary Rosalinda Dimapilis-Baldoz that the POLO has not received any information from the Filipino Community or Korean authorities of any Filipino suspected or infected with MERC-CoV.

The report assured that workplaces and training centers of foreign workers in South Korea strictly observe preventive and precautionary steps against the spread of MERS-CoV.

The Philippine Overseas Labor Office sent through the DOLE International Labor Affairs Bureau photo documentations of Filipino workers elsewhere in South Korea who are all rigorously observing safety measures versus MERS-CoV.

Labor and Employment Secretary Rosalinda Dimapilis-Baldoz, who is attending the 104th Session of the International Labor Conference in Geneva, has directed the POLO to continue monitoring the incidents and developments on MERS-CoV and assist the Philippine Embassy and Korean authorities in all its public health and safety campaigns.

To OFWs in South Korea, she reminded them to be always aware and vigilant, and to heed the information and public health advisories of the authorities to curb the spread of infection.

“This is a public health challenge that we should be concerned. Please continue taking all the necessary precaution,” Baldoz said.

In Incheon, South Korea, the POLO had sent photos of Filipinos training in the 2015 Foreign Workers’ Free Forklift/Backhoe Training at the Korea Port Training Institute fully garbed in protective clothing, including masks.

At the Emergency Multicultural Support Center in Seoul which caters to migrant Filipino Workers, advisories on proper hygiene and other countermeasures against MERS-CoV are posted on conspicuous places.

The POLO also documented other protective measures strictly implemented by employers of Filipino workers, such as Tae Kwang Industry in Yongin City, Gyeonggi-do and in During Co. Ltd. in Nambong-gum, Incheon, South Korea.

Filipino workers, including officers and members of Filipino EPS Workers Association (FEWA) and Filipino Association in Gimhae were likewise documented by the POLO complementing the strict worksite health advisories with their personal anti-MERS-CoV measures.

The Philippine Embassy (PE) in South Korea has issued a health advisory to all Pinoy OFWs, enjoining them, among others, to avoid contact with sick or infected with MERS-CoV, and if afflicted with a respiratory illness, to stay home and wear a surgical mask, ideally N95.

The N95 is a surgical respirator approved by the US National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDCP) in Atlanta, and has also been cleared by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as a surgical mask.

The PE advisory also warned OFWs against going out unnecessarily, urging them to stay inside homes and avoid public—especially confined—spaces. OFWs were also cautioned that if travels cannot be avoided, they must wear protective masks and observe proper hand hygiene at all times. OFW health workers were also advised to strictly follow infection control protocols in their workplaces.

Baldoz reiterated her call to strictly follow the health advisories on MERS-CoV, especially the one issued by the Philippine Embassy in South Korea as it specifically addresses the concerns of the Filipino workers in that country.

The Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS), according to CDCP, is a viral respiratory illness that is new to humans. It was first reported in Saudi Arabia in 2012 and has since spread to several other countries, including the United States. Most people infected with MERS-CoV developed severe acute respiratory illness, including fever, cough, and shortness of breath.

Source: www.nscb.gov.ph