Amid coronavirus fears, Swiss Health Minister advises against greeting kisses

Amid coronavirus outbreak, Switzerland's Health Minister Alain Berset reportedly said on March 1 that Swiss people should consider dropping the everyday greeting of kissing each other on the cheeks to avoid spreading of the deadly disease. While speaking to a Swiss local media outlet, Berset said that keeping one's distance socially is the best way to slow the spread of the virus. He further added that renouncing greeting kisses is a measure that should be seriously taken into consideration. 

Even though Switzerland is a neighbouring country to Italy, it has fewer than 20 confirmed cases, however, the number is still rising. As per reports, the Swiss authorities have also introduced a ban on events to draw 1,000 people or more until March 15 in an effort to combat the coronavirus. Switzerland's other neighbouring country France has also advised against shaking hands because of the deadly virus outbreak.

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'Oxygen therapy'

First detected in the city of Wuhan, in Hubei Province of China, the virus outbreak has now spread across more than 50 countries since December 2019. According to reports, the death toll in China has also surpassed 2,900 and the National Health Commission also confirmed 202 new cases. The total number of confirmed cases within China has reportedly hit 80,000 and more than 88,000 worldwide. 

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In the latest situation report released on Sunday, the WHO stressed that “oxygen therapy is a major treatment intervention for people with severe COVID-19”. The report added that all countries should work to optimize the availability of “pulse oximeters” and “medical oxygen systems”.

The report further revealed that the majority of patients are adults adding that only 2.1 per cent of the total patients in China were below the age of 20 years. It stated that clinical care of patients included early recognition, immediate isolation and implementation of appropriate infection prevention and control measures. As per WHO's report, people with mild infection should be provided with “symptomatic care” and “optimised supportive care” with those with severe disease.

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