Recently, there has been a big "hoo hah" about the swine flu (or H1N1 virus)in Singapore. The Singapore government has taken many precautionary measures---having students take their temperature in school, installing thermal scanners at different locations and so on after going on orange alert last week.
However, within a week of that, today they (the government) have moved from the orange alert to a yellow alert (which is lower). This, according to the health minister, is because the number of cases and deaths in the world is not as high as it was projected.
To me, this is a good move as I myself, as a student, do not enjoy taking temperature twice a day as it is very inconvenient. However, I feel that this may have been an over reaction by the government.
Firstly, why do students need to take their temperatures? It has been proven those who do have the virus will not show any symptoms until seven days later. Once that person has a high temperature and is discovered to have swine flu, it is already too late because this disease is very contagious. Symptoms include fever, cough, sore throat, body aches, headache, chills, diarrhoea and vomiting. In my opinion, these symptoms are easy enough to detect without having to take your temperature.
Secondly, the government rushed into an orange alert at the end of last week. Why? It seems to be an over reaction to the outbreak of this disease. The health minister said that during an epidemic, it is necessary to over react as a precautionary measure. Thermal Scanners at airports, yes. Quarantine people returning from countries with the virus, yes. Taking temperature, not necessary. If the virus has not yet entered enter the country, I do not think that we have to resort to such measures.
Maybe, I an just being bias for I do not like temperature-taking. Maybe I am correct. You can make your stand.
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