China has adopted quite a bit of western knowledge about health and medical care but has further to go. Remember, though, that we in the West also have problems with our multi-tiered, expensive medical rackets. And how many of us properly wash our hands when needed? The following, by the way, resembles many comments promoting many cure-alls that I’ve seen posted here.
Coronavirus rumors trigger irrational behaviors among Chinese netizens
By Chen Qingqing Source:Global Times Published: 2020/2/1 14:12:40
https://www.globaltimes.cn/content/1178157.shtml
[Excerpt:]
“A report by the Xinhua News Agency on Friday night claimed Chinese patent medicine, Shuanghuanglian oral liquid, containing three herbal ingredients, is effective in containing the novel coronavirus infection, citing the latest joint research between Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica under Chinese Academy of Sciences and Wuhan Institute of Virology. The news was also reported by People’s Daily soon after. It emerged as the most searched topic on Chinese Twitter-like Weibo. People rushed to purchase the medicine online and offline, resulting in it to go off the shelves in quick succession.
Pictures circulating on social media showed residents queuing up in front of pharmacies late-night braving the chilly weather to purchase Shuanghuanglian oral liquid. Some netizens even comforted each other when they found the drugs have been all sold out, planning another try in the early morning.
However, the People’s Daily published a contrasting report Saturday morning, urging people not to rush to purchase Shuanghuanglian oral liquid, as there is no specific anti-viral treatment recommended against coronavirus infection so far. Besides, research for treatment measures is still ongoing but it is yet to pass clinical trials.”
I visited someone in a U.S. hospital about 4 years ago and was surprised to see obese hospital nurses wearing common marks of drug addicts, playing with grimy smartphones and using so-called hand sanitizer instead of washing their hands. The walls were slightly sticky and greasy. Exhausted patients were too often awakened for checks and tests.