Hong Kong paid dearly when the SARS outbreak broke out in 2003, but also gained valuable experience to actively respond to Covid-19.

Hong Kong was heavily affected by the SARS pandemic 17 years ago. At that time, Hong Kong was like a "giant hospital" with 7 million "patients" wearing masks to prevent the risk of SARS infection, the disease has claimed the lives of 299 people in this city.

"Almost everyone here has experience dealing with the epidemic. They are well aware of its consequences," said Keiji Fukuda, an American infectious disease expert and assistant to the WHO Director-General, who is in charge of Health security, said. He added that SARS and other outbreaks have given Hong Kong Special Administrative Region many lessons to apply now.

As Covid-19 spreads around the world, many countries, including the United States, will need to learn how to approach similar objects, according to Fukuda. The US has so far recorded more than 1,700 nCoV infections, while Hong Kong, a city with 16 border gates with mainland China, has reported only about 130 cases and 3 deaths.

The Hong Kong government soon realized the risk after the first reports of cases in Wuhan City, the capital of Hubei Province in mainland China, and issued a warning on Jan. 4. Their fears later proved to be completely correct. The city recorded its first case on January 23, the same day China mainland declared a blockade of Wuhan, the site of Covid-19.

Fukuda, who now heads the School of Public Health at the University of Hong Kong, said the city viewed nCoV as a serious threat because many people here are used to living in fear of infectious disease.

"A fairly common thing in Hong Kong is that people always wear masks when they go out, even when there is no epidemic, because they worry they are sick and do not want to spread the disease to others," Fukuda said.

Routine disease control habits are familiar to many people in Hong Kong. People in other parts of the world, especially in Europe and the US, can hardly reach such a high level of epidemic awareness.

"I think that's exactly what the United States and many countries can learn from the Kong Kong Special Zone, but applying it is probably very difficult for them," Fukuda said.

Hong Kong has invested to improve the post-SARS health system, invest in new anti-epidemic measures and develop a major program for infectious disease prevention at the University of Hong Kong, according to Fukuda.

An investigation into the SARS epidemic in 2004 forced the then-head of Hong Kong's medical authority, Yeoh Eng-kiong, to resign. But this time, the city government has come up with a better response plan from before the first case appeared.

After months of chaotic protests, Hong Kong leaders are ready to take aggressive measures early on, such as announcing school closures from the end of January and advising citizens to maintain a safe distance from people. Other when going to public places.

According to Dr. Pak Leung-ho, head of the Hong Kong Infectious Diseases Center, with the sense of wearing a mask when going out with high vigilance of the people, the number of nCoV infections in the city has not increased sharply. turn like what's happening in Iran and Italy.

The world is adjusting to the new situation. In Asia, a number of countries have introduced measures to limit many daily activities for two months. China imposed blockades with many provinces to prevent Covid-19. Despite heavy economic losses, mainland Chinese officials recommend that many countries follow their way in the fight with nCoV.

Fukuda also believes that the decision to block Wuhan is an important move by the Chinese government to prevent nCoV from spreading, but is skeptical about the effectiveness of this strategy when applied in Western countries.

"I cannot imagine how you can impose a blockade on 50 million people in the US," he said.

In South Korea, which currently records nearly 8,000 nCoV infections, it is considered normal to test more than 10,000 people a day. One reason South Korea has to speed up mass testing is the obsession with Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS). The MERS epidemic caused 33 deaths in South Korea when the country failed to test to control the spread.

Meanwhile, the US is also having problems in testing. Jeremy Konyndyk, who oversaw the international response to the Ebola epidemic under former President Barack Obama, said testing for nCoV in the US was slow.

"They're losing a lot of valuable time that can't be compensated. You can't get back six weeks of US delay in dealing with the epidemic," he said.

Hong Kong is not the only place to take strong early response. Singapore, a country where SARS deaths have been recorded, can keep the number of nCoV infections low because of close surveillance and surveillance.

"Singapore makes public all cases and publishes near-real-time epidemiological investigations," said Jennifer Nuzzo, a professor at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

However, before a new disease like Covid-19, the Hong Kong government still could not avoid embarrassments and shortcomings. Many nurses in the special zone went on strike because the Hong Kong government was too slow to close border gates with mainland China.

Fukuda said it was difficult to compare the actions of a city of 7 million with the US, a country of more than 300 million. But like what Hong Kong learned from the SARS epidemic, the United States will probably have to learn from Covid-19.

"The US is thought to own two of the world's strongest health organizations, but their operating budgets fluctuate," Fukuda said, referring to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Diseases (CDC) and National Institutes of Health.

He added that it is unclear which of these two agencies is responsible for leading the Covid-19 response campaign and who will pay for the anti-epidemic measures, including testing costs. While in Hong Kong, the special government will cover all these costs.

"Covid-19 can spread much faster than the American reaction rate," he said.