Expats across China flee as virus fears mount

[rooster59]

Expats across China flee as virus fears mount

By Engen Tham and Josh Horwitz

 

Foreign travellers wearing masks walk past a departures information board at Beijing International Airport in Beijing, China as the country is hit by an outbreak of the new coronavirus, February 1, 2020. REUTERS/Jason Lee

 

SHANGHAI (Reuters) - Expatriates are leaving coronavirus-hit China - and not just from the outbreak epicentre in Wuhan - as worries about their children take hold and private health care facilities start turning away the feverish.

 

Some foreigners also fear being trapped indefinitely as airlines cancel flights and countries quarantine or limit entry for people who have recently set foot in the country, according to interviews with eight people who are or were based in four Chinese cities.

 

A growing number of governments are urging their citizens not to travel to China and the United Kingdom said on Saturday its embassy and consulates in the country will maintain only a skeleton staff.

 

"It may be increasingly difficult for those who wish to leave China to do so, and there is a growing risk of UK nationals being unable to access medical care as hospitals become overwhelmed," the British embassy said on Saturday.

 

The virus, declared a global emergency by the World Health Organization (WHO) on Thursday, has killed 259 people and spread to some two dozen countries, although the vast majority of those known to be infected are in China.

 

Expat chatgroups are alight with exchanges on the pros and cons of leaving, and tips on visas.

 

"Wouldn't go if we didn't have kid," Russian expat Maria Arkhangelskaya, who has a 20-month-old daughter and left Shanghai for Thailand on Thursday, said via WeChat.

 

Meanwhile, many of the costly private clinics catering to foreigners have started to turn people with fevers away, raising concerns among the expat community they would have to rely on local facilities if they needed medical care.

 

"I don't want to go to the local hospital with a sore throat only to catch something else," said Czech national Veronika Krubner in Tianjin, who is considering leaving the country with her 21-month-old daughter.

 

Private clinic Raffles in Beijing will take the temperature of patients on entry and suspected virus cases will be referred to public fever clinics, a person answering the appointments hotline said.

 

People manning the appointment lines at private practices Parkway Health and Ferguson in Shanghai said the government had instructed them not to accept patients with a high temperature, and that they should be referred to public fever clinics.

 

Private clinic Jiahui Health said in a January 24 text message to patients in Shanghai that it cannot screen for the virus and those who have a fever of over 37.8 degrees Celsius (100° Fahrenheit) should go to a public facility designated for treating fever patients.

 

Visiting a public hospital in China can mean first waiting in line to get a ticket to see a doctor, only to wait in an another hours-long queue before being seen, and language is a barrier for non-Chinese speakers. Harrowing scenes of panicked crowds in Wuhan hospitals have circulated on social media.

 

One U.S. citizen who is based in Shanghai and asked not to be identified said he flew home to California last week.

 

"I'm not worried so much about the virus as I am about being forced to go to a Chinese hospital simply for having a fever," he said.

 

Over 900,000 foreigners were living in China last year, according to a January 2019 report in the official China Daily.

 

GROUNDING FEARS

 

The WHO has praised China for its response to the outbreak thus far.

 

Many areas of China have extended the Lunar New Year holiday through Feb 9, and companies have curtailed business travel.

 

There is "no business to do in China for at least two weeks," said Louis-Olivier Roy, a Canadian business-owner based in the southern city of Dongguan who decided on Tuesday to return home temporarily.

 

"I was planning to travel around for work but obviously can't for a while," he said.

 

As airlines cancel flights, many expats are trying to get away, afraid of being effectively stranded in the country.

 

The United States, Australia and Singapore have barred entry to foreigners who have recently been in China.

 

"If the problem got severe enough I might not be able to make it back to America," said another American, who flew home on Jan 24 to avoid the possibility of mass flight cancellations.

 

VIRUS FATIGUE

 

As anxiety rises, demand for emotional support is soaring.

 

"People are really scared," said Emanuele Gatti, a counselling psychologist based in the southern city of Shenzhen.

 

After sending out a flyer for an online coronavirus support group for those suffering "severe anxiety and isolation" on Wednesday, he was inundated with requests on Thursday.

 

"I am receiving 1 friendship request per minute," he said on Thursday.

 

While some turn to online help, others are still trying to decide whether to stay or go.

 

"Everyone is going and I just get messages asking me if I've booked my flight yet," said Han Lili, a British national living in Shanghai.

 

(Reporting by Engen Tham, Josh Horowitz and David Stanway in Shanghai, Muyu Xu in Beijing and Ben Blanchard in Taipei; Editing by Tony Munroe and Lincoln Feast.)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2020-02-02

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[Tug]

Glad I’m not in Asia rite now hopefully we will get a handle on it soon

[Liverpudlian]

Wow ! i find the global paranoia is going way over the top.

[sammieuk1]

The Brits have got it right just leave skeletons to do the job ???? 

[KeeTua]

27 minutes ago, Liverpudlian said:

Wow ! i find the global paranoia is going way over the top.

And there were probably people like you in China that claimed a few health care professionals were being too paranoid when they first began drawing attention to the virus.

 

We need to hope for the best but plan for the worst.

[baansgr]

Maria, leaves China for Thailand....beggars beliefe

[Tayaout]

19 minutes ago, KeeTua said:

We need to hope for the best but plan for the worst.

There is no downside to buy extra food and medecine that will be used anyway. 

[Gweiloman]

I almost posted a few days ago that Thailand’s perceived lack of action was another devious way of trying to force some expats out. Not the old timers, they will steadfastly trudge through anything thrown their way but a lot of newcomers who have nothing but criticism for all things Thai, something very evident on TV recently. 

[ExpatOK]

1 hour ago, Liverpudlian said:

Wow ! i find the global paranoia is going way over the top.

 

https://youtu.be/WvbuNaTSRpM

[Henryford]

1 hour ago, Liverpudlian said:

Wow ! i find the global paranoia is going way over the top.

Agree, Thai drivers kill more people in every day than the Corona virus.

[neeray]

5 minutes ago, Henryford said:

Agree, Thai drivers kill more people in every day than the Corona virus.

As said on various other threads, "one has nothing to do with the other".

Virus deaths are in addition to all other deaths.

[Liverpudlian]

1 hour ago, KeeTua said:

And there were probably people like you in China that claimed a few health care professionals were being too paranoid when they first began drawing attention to the virus.

 

We need to hope for the best but plan for the worst.

My life is by far at greater risk every time i go out on my motorbike here.

[SteveK]

24 minutes ago, neeray said:

As said on various other threads, "one has nothing to do with the other".

Of course they don't! But it helps put the mass hysteria into perspective, when nobody is reporting on the far higher number of people who have died on Thai roads since this pandemic started.

[baansgr]

32 minutes ago, SteveK said:

Of course they don't! But it helps put the mass hysteria into perspective, when nobody is reporting on the far higher number of people who have died on Thai roads since this pandemic started.

But their is a daily report, has been for at least 18 months, and the same, Thai authorities not taking it seriously, plus this only effects Thailand, not the whole world

[zydeco]

1 hour ago, baansgr said:

Maria, leaves China for Thailand....beggars beliefe

Yes, Thailand, it appears, is the exit route. Hordes of people fleeing the virus will be passing through Bangkok.

[Jimbo2014]

3 hours ago, Liverpudlian said:

Wow ! i find the global paranoia is going way over the top.

Is it - this thing spreads about the same as  flue but has about a 59 TIMES greater mortality rate.... 1 in 30... hmmmm... I prefer to avoid those odds ????

[Jimbo2014]

1 hour ago, zydeco said:

Yes, Thailand, it appears, is the exit route. Hordes of people fleeing the virus will be passing through Bangkok.

TAT slogan, spend, shop, drop.

[car720]

Obviously this is global and will get worse but one thing that seems glaringly obvious is the complete lack of any report on the survivers, i.e. those that have had it and recovered.  12,000 cases so far but it has been a month already and barely a whisper about the recovery rate.

[chingmai331]

Got a fever?  Cash payment up front at hospital entrance. Aliens must prove medical fees prior to service. 

As it should be, for aliens.

[Andrew65]

4 hours ago, KeeTua said:

And there were probably people like you in China that claimed a few health care professionals were being too paranoid when they first began drawing attention to the virus.

 

We need to hope for the best but plan for the worst.

In 1918 Spanish flu killed an estimated 50 million, and infected 500 million, the reason for paranoia

[howbri]

4 hours ago, spidermike007 said:

I hear that doctors and staff treating the patients in China, do not even have access to decent quality masks, as the Chicoms were caught completely off guard, and masks have sold out worldwide, due to panic. The medical people in China are very scared. With the number of wet markets in China, they had to know it was only a matter of time before another outbreak like Sars. Why the complete lack of preparation? What were they thinking? Were they thinking? They have known about this since December 31st, when the first doctor went public, and was then humiliated, arrested, and forced to sign a ridiculous confession. The Chicoms are a completely ridiculous bunch of money and power hungry men.

 

Dr. Jiang, the military doctor who became a whistle-blower in 2003, has been put under periodic house arrest and forbidden to visit the United States to collect a human rights award. He is also portrayed as a bad role model. A multiple-choice question posed by a test-prep school in 2017 asked about Dr. Jiang’s decision. The correct answer was B: It was wrong because it harmed the interests of the nation, the society and the community and should be subject to legal punishment.

 

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/22/health/virus-corona.html

 

China’s highest court has praised eight whistleblower doctors who were arrested by Wuhan police in early January and forced to ­confess to spreading false rumours after they tried to alert the public to the unfolding coronavirus outbreak. The eight, all believed to be medical professionals, were ­arrested on January 1 and accused of “fabricating, disseminating and spreading rumours” over online posts in late December warning of a “SARS-like” coronavirus.

 

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/world/praise-for-chinese-doctors-who-coronavirus-blew-whistle/news-story/eb47484900dbd409099e20784a9dda96

 

 

 

level of preparedness.pdf 449.35 kB · 0 downloads

I lived in China for 4 years, ten years ago. The hospitals even in Shanghai are terrible, the doctors are poorly educated and the end result is always a bag full of "medicine". Thailand is a little better but still get the bagful of medication regardless.

[blazes]

80,000 Americans died of winter flu two winters ago.

 

https://www.statnews.com/2018/09/26/cdc-us-flu-deaths-winter

 

I believe the world-wide figure was 400,000 deaths.

[Salerno]

1 hour ago, car720 said:

barely a whisper about the recovery rate.

People recovering isn't sexy enough for click bait.

[khunpa]

4 hours ago, SteveK said:

Of course they don't! But it helps put the mass hysteria into perspective, when nobody is reporting on the far higher number of people who have died on Thai roads since this pandemic started.

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/01/world/asia/china-coronavirus.html?action=click&module=Top Stories&pgtype=Homepage

 

You should read this and then after take a look at this:

 

https://bnonews.com/index.php/2020/01/the-latest-coronavirus-cases/

 

After that you should read this new forecast study showing whats likely to happen: https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(20)30260-9/fulltext

 

Gives you an idea of the strain on the health care systems in all affected countries, if this keeps on.

 

 

 

[khunpa]

14 minutes ago, blazes said:

80,000 Americans died of winter flu two winters ago.

 

https://www.statnews.com/2018/09/26/cdc-us-flu-deaths-winter

 

I believe the world-wide figure was 400,000 deaths.

Just give this some time and your next comparison will be about the plague. 

[blazes]

27 minutes ago, khunpa said:

Just give this some time and your next comparison will be about the plague. 

 

Clearly your absurd reference to "the plague" indicates that you did not understand that my meagre figures were meant to support those who believe there is too much paranoia in the presentation of this infection.

Your Lancet reference seems also to support those who have confidence that, with all appropriate measures taken, the epidemic can be contained.

[overherebc]

22 hours ago, neeray said:

As said on various other threads, "one has nothing to do with the other".

Virus deaths are in addition to all other deaths.

22 hours ago, neeray said:

As said on various other threads, "one has nothing to do with the other".

Virus deaths are in addition to all other deaths.

Extension of 'it's ok when it's someone elses mother that dies'.

[LazySlipper]

23 hours ago, Gweiloman said:

I almost posted a few days ago that Thailand’s perceived lack of action was another devious way of trying to force some expats out. Not the old timers,

 

You should have controlled your urge to post and refrained from doing so.

 

If you don't understand what most TV posters usually complain about you probably haven't been living here long enough, or haven't been screwed around with your visa... at national parks, for creative billing in hospitals ...etc... so rather than poke cynicism at those of us whose heads aren't in the clouds anymore live and learn and refrain from posting rubbish that puts down your fellow farang.

[RocketDog]

20 hours ago, chingmai331 said:

Got a fever?  Cash payment up front at hospital entrance. Aliens must prove medical fees prior to service. 

As it should be, for aliens.

I would hate to be the poor soul who collects and touches such cash. They should wear a hazmat suit. 

[elliss]

23 hours ago, zydeco said:

Yes, Thailand, it appears, is the exit route. Hordes of people fleeing the virus will be passing through Bangkok.

 

       TAT ,   will include them in the visitors numbers to Thailand increase ..