WHO rep emphasizes solidarity, togetherness

The only way the novel coronavirus outbreak can be overcome is when everyone has achieved immunity by getting vaccinated or by having been exposed to the virus, said Gauden Galea, World Health Organization representative in China. 

It is tragic the great toll on humanity the coronavirus has taken, Galea said. The numbers continue to grow and are clearly far from reaching their peak, he added at a news conference in Beijing on Tuesday.

"We need to assess risks from the country level to the individual level, which can be achieved by testing, as it is important to understand in each community how much transmission has taken place."

In China, most communities are free of the virus and new cases are basically imported cases, he said.

To fight the pandemic, measures available include universal precautions, such as hand-washing and respiratory etiquette. Many countries have adopted the use of masks, which is still under review by expert committee, but they are being used in a number of countries, including China, he said.

The main preventive method is hand-washing with soap and water or sanitizer, as the main way the virus enters the body is through hands touching the face, eyes, nose and mouth, he said.

Methods that have shown to work in China include early identification, early reporting, early isolation and early treatment for the cases and quarantine for close contacts, he said.

At higher levels, one adopts measures such as banning public gatherings and even more rigorous restrictions of public movement, Galea said.

Another method is to adopt digital health in order to perform everything from ensuring supplies and logistics to contact tracing and risk assessment, he said, adding the attitude of solidarity, cooperation and unified approach across the whole society helps.

The search for a vaccine and effective treatments is now a priority around the world. Academics, government institutions, researchers and private corporations are all researching and trying vaccines and different types of medicine, he said.

The same solidarity one needs at a countrywide level in order to have an effective response is also needed internationally to cooperate in research, as the best minds around the world working together will help find a solution much faster, he added.