Chapter 596 Ganta Kana Virus
From the discovery of the virus to now.
It has been four days since the first discussion meeting was held. The efficiency of this work is a bit too slow...
Gu Ji looked at these well-dressed senior officials, all of whom lowered their heads to communicate with each other with anxious expressions. It was obvious that he did not expect that things would develop to this point.
He rolled his eyelids and followed Raja to sit at the back of the auditorium.
soon.
The meeting begins.
The person in charge of presiding over the meeting was an old man with gray hair wearing a dark gray suit. He was the Prime Minister of Nepal Pal, and sitting next to him were several ministers such as the Ministry of Interior and the Ministry of Health.
The first half of the meeting was nothing more than a report on some existing situations.
But here it is.
Gu Ji heard several sets of extremely exaggerated numbers:
The number of infections exceeds 2,100;
The number of first close contacts is estimated to be around 80,000;
The number of deaths of severely infected people so far: 340;
Severe mortality rate: 53%! !
"The mortality rate is only half, it seems okay..."
After listening to the report summarized by the Ministry of Health, Raja whispered in Gu Ji's ear.
But Gu Ji's expression not only lacked any optimism, but instead his brows furrowed deeper.
Only people in the public health field know how terrifying this set of data is.
To know.
It has only been 4 days since the first infected person appeared in the mental hospital, and so many severely infected people have appeared, with a mortality rate of more than 50%. This is already comparable to the king of viruses, "Ebola"!
Take for example the most terrifying Zaire type.
High fever occurs 2 to 5 days after infection, and death occurs within 6 to 9 days. The average mortality rate is as high as 88%.
In contrast, this new type of virulent virus that appeared in Nepal has an incubation period of only 1 to 2 days once infected, and it will enter severe disease 3 to 4 days after onset, until death. It is simply more terrifying than poison.
Officials have tentatively named this new unknown virus "Gantakana".
In Nepali traditional culture, Gantakana is an extremely evil demon. Just like the virulent virus that appears in front of us, it will only bring endless disasters to mankind.
"The time is too short and the number of samples is too small. This value is simply not accurate, because there are still many severe patients who have not had time to develop the disease, and Gantakana currently does not have any specific drugs or treatments, and the mortality rate will only continue to rise! "
"Then what should we do?"
"As the current epidemic of infectious diseases becomes more and more serious, all departments must come up with solutions as soon as possible. The Ministry of Interior, starting with you!"
As soon as Raja finished asking, the Prime Minister of the Cabinet on the backstage called their Ministry of Interior.
Upon seeing this, the Capital Director immediately reminded the two to prepare.
"The director will call you soon. Just answer whatever they ask. Don't talk too much. Do you hear me?"
"Know."
Gu Ji responded coldly.
as expected.
As soon as the Minister of the Interior finished his speech, the Police Inspector mentioned Gu Ji.
"Let me introduce you to a person who experienced the early stage of the Gantakana virus outbreak, Ms. Seema. She also provided very valuable information and materials to our capital police station. Seema, let me talk about your views on the virus. Just tell me everything you know!”
In an instant, many people turned around.
All the officials' eyes were focused on Gu Ji, and some of the officials closest to him subconsciously shrank away when they heard that he had experienced the early stages of the virus outbreak.
Look at the fearful, urgent and uneasy expressions of these officials under your nose.
Gu Ji rolled his eyelids and said:
“Eleven years ago, the Ebola epidemic broke out on a large scale in West Africa, claiming more than 10,000 lives. Its fatality rate of up to 90% was daunting. People directly defined the Ebola virus as the ‘god of death’;
Now, Gantakana will be more serious than it. If we don't take countermeasures as soon as possible and continue to discuss it here, then Nepal will have the same result, or even worse! "
"Ouch!"
"Does this guy know what he's talking about?"
"Who hired this? How dare you speak like this in front of the Prime Minister? It's totally out of character!"
"yes……"
One stone stirs up a thousand waves.
Gu Ji's words directly aroused the dissatisfaction of everyone in the hall.
The capital director sitting next to him had already turned livid and stared at Gu Ji fiercely. If he could have done it, he would have pounced on Gu Ji by now, pushed Gu Ji to the ground and violently hammered him.
Prime Minister Pal pushed up his glasses.
It seemed that he didn't expect that a commoner like Gu Ji would speak so openly.
The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Health on the side suppressed his emotions and did not show his emotions. He just asked in a low voice: "Everything must be based on evidence. You, an amateur, only have a few years of training experience in the chemical defense force, dare to talk casually? "
"Talk about the basis?"
Gu Ji looked solemn, "What is the basis? Have you clearly studied the genetic sequence of Gantakana's virus? What is its main mode of transmission? What is the probability of a patient being exposed to infection? Who are the high-risk susceptible groups?"
Several questions were raised in succession, which temporarily rendered the Minister of Health speechless.
Before he could refute.
Gu Ji then gave another example:
“Although I don’t know this, I know one thing very well: the country’s total annual health expenditure is only US$105 million, 30% of which relies on WHO, UNICEF and foreign aid, and the per capita health expenditure is only US$80;
The most important thing is that the Ministry of Health has not yet established a medical security system. The ratio of health personnel per 1,000 people is only 0.21, while the world average is 2.8. With this kind of medical resources, do you think there is hope to fight against such a terrifying and virulent virus? "
Any of the data he mentioned is tantamount to poking the health minister's lungs directly.
This guy's face turned pale and red for a while, and he was obviously extremely angry.
But in fact, there is one more thing that Gu Ji did not mention.
That's religion!
All people in Nepal believe in religion, and it is estimated that there are at least 400,000 medical practitioners who believe in traditional religious superstitions, which is almost 1 in every 40 people. These traditional beliefs have greatly contributed to the spread of the disease and will definitely affect the implementation of prevention and control policies.
"Sima, that's enough!"
The capital director who couldn't stand listening was so anxious that he grabbed Gu Ji's arm and tried to pull him down.
But the Prime Minister raised his hand to stop him.
"Since you said so much in one breath, there must be a solution?"
"Yes, or rather, someone else has!"
This is the opportunity Gu Ji has been waiting for.
"We currently have no experience in dealing with large-scale public health crises, but the Xia Kingdom next to us has rich experience. They have experienced two international public health emergencies, and now they have also discovered people infected with the Gantakana virus, so My suggestion is to seek medical assistance from Xia State immediately!"
"We have already started working on the matter you mentioned."
The Prime Minister of the Cabinet raised his eyebrows and seemed not satisfied with the answer. "I heard from the Police Chief that you have always advocated closing the country's borders and implementing self-isolation?"
"Yes, but now we need to upgrade it to another level. Now Kathmandu is on the verge of losing control at any time. Civilians are fighting for supplies, and gangs and armed groups are taking the opportunity to wreak havoc. This will only aggravate the escalation of the infection;
Therefore, we not only have to close the city, but also strictly restrict people's movement. Everyone can only stay at home, suspend all commercial and public service activities, and only medical care, food and drug supply chains, and other basic services are allowed to operate;
At the same time, we must strengthen community inspections, send personnel to neighborhoods to find potential infected people, and conduct nucleic acid tests, strengthen existing medical resources, train medical staff, add hospital beds, and strengthen the supply chain of medical equipment and drugs. As for the virus in Gantakana And vaccine research, all left to Xia Guo and WHO! "
Gu Ji’s plan can be said to be trying every possible means to make use of all the resources in Nepal.
Theoretically speaking.
Areas with concentrated virus outbreaks are the best places to study viruses.
However, Nepal’s medical conditions and technological level are limited. Rather than wasting time and energy on this, it would be better to leave it to a truly powerful superpower.
"Um."
The Prime Minister just sighed and looked at the Minister of Health beside him.
The frightened Minister of Health nervously picked up the mineral water in front of him and tried to drink water to relieve his embarrassment.
Just as Gu Ji said.
Nepal has no experience in dealing with large-scale public health crises.
Even as the Minister of Health, he can only seek help from the WHO and discuss with foreign experts before finalizing a detailed plan.
But Gu Ji just said it casually.
I came up with a set of methods that looked pretty good.
"I think what this woman said seems to make sense..."
"Bullshit! Do you know how much damage sealing national borders and restricting the movement of people will bring to the domestic economy? Moreover, it is not that easy to talk about strengthening medical treatment. It all requires a lot of money!"
"Yes, a hasty blockade will probably arouse public resentment and panic!"
…
For a time, some people refuted the plan proposed by Gu Ji, while others expressed approval.
But it is obvious that the opposition in the former is more active.
The main forces among them are naturally health, finance, culture, tourism, aviation, etc.
Gu Ji's blockade policy will directly affect their interests.
Especially the tourism industry.
Once Kathmandu begins a lockdown, their most important tourism revenue will suffer a serious decline, but compared to the harm caused by the virus, this sacrifice is worth it.
As for the so-called public resentment and panic.
Why didn't the Ministry of Communications consider this when it cut off the Internet?
Just when everyone was arguing with each other.
"Ahem..."
An inappropriate cough suddenly appeared.
In an instant, the officials who were discussing seemed to have been pressed on the pause button. They fell silent one by one, and the entire auditorium fell silent.
"Who was coughing just now?"
"Oh my god, could someone here be infected by the virus?"
"Put on your mask quickly, quickly!"
…
I don’t know who murmured the word “virus”.
A strong panic soon swept through the entire venue. Countless officials braced themselves, closed their masks tightly, and looked around with vigilant eyes.
They understand the horrors of the Gantakana virus better than civilians.
Naturally, he is also more afraid of death.
The prime minister's secretary hurriedly ran to the stage and whispered something in his ear.
"Okay, let's end the meeting here first!"
In the end, the Prime Minister of the Cabinet did not decide whether to adopt Gu Ji's plan, so he stopped hastily, as if he was afraid of being affected by the infection.
Walk out of the venue.
Gu Ji heard a cold snort from behind. He turned around and saw that it was several officials from the Ministry of Health.
"Don't look at it. What you just said made them lose face. Of course the Ministry of Health will regard you as an enemy."
At this time, a bald middle-aged man in a blue-black suit came over. Next to him was Police Inspector General Puchand, who was the Minister of the Interior who had just been sitting on the stage with the Prime Minister.
I can tell.
Although Gu Ji's words just now made many people unhappy, the people in the Ministry of Internal Affairs were actually very happy.
It is probably because the Ministry of Health is weak.
It seems that there is no peace between the Ministry of Interior and the Ministry of Health.
"This is Deputy Prime Minister Bhandari."
Puchande opened his mouth and introduced.
Bhandari raised his hand slightly and looked Gu Ji up and down, "Since the Prime Minister did not veto this plan in person, there is a high probability that it will be implemented immediately. The Ministry of Interior will set up an order inspection committee, and Puchande and you will be responsible for it. !”
"Yes, Mr. Deputy Prime Minister!"
Gu Ji bowed his head politely.
After a lot of effort, I finally got what I wanted!
After Bhandari left, the Director of the Capital City immediately came up to him cheerfully and flattered him: "Congratulations, Director, I'm so happy that the Deputy Prime Minister has entrusted you with such an important position!"
"Okay, you thought this job would be so easy?"
Unexpectedly, Puchande had a sad look on his face.
Everyone knows that Kathmandu is in a mess right now. It is already very difficult for the police and armed police forces in the city to control an area, let alone restore order in the entire city.
It seemed that he was thinking of Gu Ji's performance at the meeting just now.
Puchand couldn't help but ask: "Seema, since the deputy prime minister has entrusted this work to you and me, let's talk about it. What good ideas do you have?"
"There is currently a serious shortage of police personnel in the city. If we want to completely control Kathmandu, we need more talents!"
Gu Ji narrowed his eyes, "Currently, except for the capital, where the virus is severely affected, the other dozen or so regions have not yet experienced an outbreak. We can second the police force and concentrate it in the capital for support, and at the same time, we can also seek assistance from the military!"
"Well, this is a solution..."
Puchande pondered for a moment.
But there is currently no solution to the virus, many police officers are afraid of Kathmandu, and it is not that easy to implement.
"But these are minor issues."
Gu Ji frowned and looked at the bloody countdown in the upper right corner and the unfinished system tasks in the lower left corner. "The most important thing to solve now is to locate the source of the virus. As I said before, this is likely to be a man-made attack." A biochemical virus terrorist attack, if you want to control the disaster, you should find the person who poisoned the mental hospital as soon as possible! "
"You are right, Basnet, leave this matter to you and Sima!"
"yes!"
The capital director on the side responded quickly.
After Puchande left, the guy straightened his back again and began to show off his official authority, "Didn't I say you are not allowed to talk nonsense? I will spare you this time. Come back with me and take away everything in the mental hospital." Explain what happened again!”
Unexpectedly, Gu Ji showed no mercy to him and just shook his head.
"I was locked up in a solitary room at the time, so I don't know much. My suggestion is to check the relevant personnel in the hospital, surveillance, and entry and exit lists first!"