MERS Responses

There has been an outbreak of MERS in Korea for about a month now and observing the responses by the government, businesses, and individuals has been fascinating. I am most interested in street-level responses, because they are the ones that most people experience directly, and the ones that have the most relevence to individuals. The broader, governmental policy and medical responses are more abstract, and don’t enter into daily consideration in the same way. The street-level responses stare you in the face every day. I will examine two prongs: information and protection.

A bit of background: MERS, or Middle East Respiratory Syndrome is basically a flu that can kill you —according to the WHO approximately 36% of reported patients have died. There are 186 reported cases here, and so far 33 people have died (which is a much lower percentage than the WHO’s). There are many other sources for info on the disease and spread if that’s what you’re looking for.

Information

Education seems to have become a priority, recovering from an initial slow start (the initial government response was criticized for being slow and secretive). These signs are now prominently displayed in every subway station and illustrate ten things you should know about MERS. I view them as successful in the task of providing a broad-brush information dump to a busy and potentially under-informed populace. They cover origin, transmission, symptoms, prevention, diagnosis, and treatment in a compact and glanceable format, with graphics that clearly and quickly convey relevant information without absolutely relying on the text. If this is the only information you have on MERS, you are in a decent spot.

Focusing in on each graphic, and the message conveyed without reading virtually any of the text:

MERS has an association with camels. This is perhaps not the most important element, but helps give some background on the disease.

The symptoms are a fever and cough, and this cough can transmit the disease in a space of 2 meters.

I should cover my mouth (assuming when coughing) and wash my hands with soap and water.

There is a focus on 14 days throughout the poster. Without knowing the relevance of this time period, I still know to pay attention to a two week period.

There is a science-y test for MERS, some treatment is available, and safety gear such as gloves and masks will help.

All in all, not bad for a quick glance.

Protection

Complementing the dissemination of information is access to protection. Hand sanitizer pods have sprouted throughout the city, on public transportation, in offices, and at the entrances to malls and shops. They provide a simple means for people to directly take protective action.

Alcohol-based hand sanitizer is part of the CDC-recommended regimen to protect against respiratory illnesses and most of the hand sanitizer sold in Korea is alcohol based, so these dispensers are more than simply for show. Numerous studies on hand sanitization in hospitals show that access & awareness improve compliance and the dispensers are nothing if not ubiquitous and prominent. Taken together, it is a safe assumption that there will be increased usage of an effective product, which is a net positive.

Conclusion

These responses should be viewed as successful on several levels. On a functional one, they address many of the fears surrounding MERS, provide people with advice on actionable steps, and directly provide the ability to act. The messaging is clear, equipment is appropriate and readily accessible, and the scale of the response fits neatly into everyday life. The solutions are simple and unobtrusive enough that people will actually use them.

Of course, questions can be raised as to how serious MERS actually is (since transmission outside of hospitals has been rare or nonexistent) and how necessary any of these precautions actually are. These questions lead to another type of success — that of addressing emotional needs. Scared people don’t want to be told simply not to worry, that what’s going on isn’t a big deal. They want reassurance, clear information, and simple steps to take that will protect them and their families. In this, the responses shine. They satisfy the need for recognition, that the government hears the concerns of the people and is acting on them. They also help people perform rituals of protection and enable people to feel that they are taking charge of their own health.

Luckily, it seems that the outbreak is subsiding with the number of new cases having dropped. Hopefully the whole episode will be put to rest in the near future. Still, it has been a fascinating situation to be surrounded by.

P.S. There are a few other responses that I haven’t touched on, such as thermal cameras at business entrances, an increase in the wearing of masks, and direct temperature checks by way of ear thermometers in schools and medical centers. The motivations and results are much the same and I didn’t want this to get too long.