15 May 2014 - Philippine Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Ezzedin Tago led officials from the Philippine Embassy in Riyadh in meeting with community members, especially Filipino medical professionals in the Eastern Region on May 09, and in Riyadh on May 10 to discuss latest developments on the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome-coronavisrus (MERS-CoV).

The Embassy officials stressed to the medical professionals the need to follow infection prevention and control guidelines prescribed by the hospitals, the Saudi Ministry of Health (MOH), and the World Health Organization. 

Ambassador Tago and Embassy officials also reviewed with the community the various advisories and information from the Philippine Department of Health (DOH) and the MOH, all of which are available on the Embassy website (riyadhpe.dfa.gov.ph), the MOH website (www.moh.gov.sa), and the DOH website (www.doh.gov.ph).

Since the school year is about to start, schools following the Philippine curriculum in the Eastern Region and Riyadh committed to holding information campaigns for their staff, students and parents.  In addition, professional organisations agreed to hold echo briefings for their members to ensure that valuable information on how to prevent MERS-CoV resonates to the community.

The Embassy urged everyone to refer to official website for information on latest advisories, and urged the audience to refrain from echoing unconfirmed information from social media.

The Embassy reiterated to healthcare workers the previous advice to strictly follow infection control protocols in their respective workplaces, and to undergo voluntary MERS-CoV screening through their employers, especially if they intend to travel.  In addition, the Embassy reiterated to the rest of the community to follow prevention techniques advised by the MOH and the DOH and to follow general health practices that enhance their immune system. END