The novel Coronavirus update from Sri Lanka

• Sri Lanka currently has no Coronavirus patients.
• Sri Lanka Tourism is monitoring the Coronavirus situation closely, and have taken concrete measures to strengthen the detection and management at all arrival and departure points.
• Ministry of Health confirmed today (11) that no Sri Lankan has so far tested positive for the Coronavirus disease in its latest assessment of the impact of the potentially deadly disease on the country.
• The only positive case so far has been the Chinese guest who was swiftly treated at the Infectious Diseases Hospital (IDH). Mulleriyawa and is now listed as recovering although the Health authorities are still keeping her under observation in hospital.
• The 33 students who returned from Wuhan city are reported to be in good health, but have been released after being quarantined at the Diyatalawa Army Base.
• Twelve hospitals around the country have been identified as treatment centres for thosepatients who may have been exposed to the coronavirus. They als the NIID/IDH, Teaching Hospital (TH) Ragama, DGH Gampaha, DGH Negombo, National Hospital Kandy, Karapitiya, TH Anuradhapura, TH Jaffna, TH Kurunegala, PGH Ratnapura, TH Batticaloa, PGH Badulla.
• Sri Lankan student returnees from China and people who recently visited China for other purposes during the last 14 days are advised to stay in their homes with minimal contacts from the day of arrival in Sri Lanka. All of them are regularly monitored by the MOHs and Pils of the relevant areas.
• Steps are already taken to create awareness on the outbreak among tourism industry stakeholders and accordingly, the Tourism and Health Ministries are working closely to combat the spread of the Coronavirus within all tourist hotspots of the country. The government is vigilant to ensure that the safety of all citizens and tourists alike are looked after during this time.
• On 4 of February, the government suspended the issuance of visa on arrival to Chinese tourists as a preventive measure to control the spread of the virus in the country. From now on, Chinese nationals have to submit their visa application while in China before arriving in Sri Lanka and after carefully scrutinizing the applicant’s province and other information Visa will be granted.
• The Health Ministry has introduced a mobile app to track down the movement of visiting Chinese nationals and help medical and public health officers to monitor their health condition.
• On arrival, Chinese visitors will be required to provide their mobile phone numbers they will be using in Sri Lanka. Thereby, the Medical Health Officers and the Public Health Inspectors will be able to track down the location of the visitors and check their health condition with the help of the app.
• At present, all passengers arriving in the country are required to make a self-declaration about their health condition
• Meanwhile, measures have been put in place to ensure carriers of the Corona Virus cannot enter the country via Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) and 24 hour monitoring is conducted by BIA staff including body temperature screening machines to detect the virus with the assistance of the Health and Indigenous Medicine Services Ministry and Sri Lanka Army medical teams.
• Further, from 4 of Feb onwards a prohibition has been put in place for visitors from accompanying passengers inside the Airport until further notice and for passengers arriving from China, a separate exit terminal has been set up at the Bandaranaike International Airport.
• Epidemiologists advise the general public and tourists to wash their hands frequently avoid close contact with people suffering from the flu, avoid contact with live or dead animals always cover the nose and mouth while coughing or sneezing (with disposable tissue cloth or hand), not to touch mouth nose eyes unnecessarily and to avoid crowded places as much as possible in order to avoid Coronavirus infection.