Preparedness and Response to COVID-19 in Saudi Arabia: Lessons Learned from MERS-CoV <!--EndFragment-->

Abstract

Nearly three months have passed since the emergence of the severe acute respiratory syndrome-coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2), which caused the rapidly spreading Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. To date, there have been more than 550,000 confirmed cases and more than 25,000 deaths globally caused by COVID-19. Chinese health authorities, where the virus emerged, have taken prompt strict public health measures to control and prevent the spread of the outbreak. In the kingdom of Saudi Arabia, unprecedented precautionary strict measures were applied to slow virus entry and to mitigate the risk of the outbreak. Here, we review the experience learned during the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS-CoV) epidemic in Saudi Arabia, which has been in the country since 2012, and is expected to have helped the country to be well prepared for the current COVID-19 pandemic. We also discuss the country readiness, improvement in research and development, and the unprecedented rapid precautionary measures that have been taken by the Saudi government thus far.

Mathematical modeling of the COVID-19 prevalence in Saudi Arabia

“…The forecast of the ARIMA models for the successive 10-days of total cases is presented in table (4). The forecast indicated gradual increase in the reaching 194,935; 1,700; and 137,224 for total confirmed cases, death, and recovery by 1 st July 2020, respectively.…”

“…Decades of extensive experiences in management of Hajj and Umrah, have equipped the Kingdom with accumulated knowledge and expertise to deal with infectious epidemics promptly, as stated by Saudi health authorities (2). Additionally, dealing with MERS-CoV for the last seven years, resulting in a noticeable improvement in infection control practice in health care institutions in the Kingdom (3,4). The government of Saudi Arabia implemented fast and stringent non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) to prevent the spread of SARS-CoV-2 via human-to-human transmission (5).…”

‘Senior Nursing Students and Interns’ Concerns and Willingness to Treat Patients with COVID-19: A Strategy to Expand National Nursing Workforce during the COVID-19 Pandemic

“…6 Saudi Arabia is one of the countries which have witnessed the documented emergence of the novel highly pathogenic coronavirus epidemics in recent years and have accumulated a frontline experience in dealing with and preparing for coronavirus epidemics. While clinical and scientific research has improved, 7 better research and development are needed, owing to the different characteristics of the COVID-19 pandemic. While diversified approaches to research were used to analyze the phenomenon of the pandemic, only a few investigations were conducted to assess the effect of these measures in the perception of nursing students and interns, particularly in their willingness to treat patients infected with COVID-19.…”

Silent disease and loss of taste and smell are common manifestations of SARS-COV-2 infection in a quarantine facility: Saudi Arabia

“…The first confirmed case of SARS-COV-2 in Saudi Arabia was on March 2nd, 2020, for a Saudi traveler who came back from Iran. In response to the COVID19 pandemic, Saudi Arabia was one of the first countries that applied early and stringent mitigation measures while the number of confirmed cases was still low (300 cases) [ 9 ]. On March 15th, 2020, the Saudi CDC (Weqaya) imposed new regulations on all travelers coming from outside the kingdom to prevent importing infection from these countries.…”