Page 57 - Human Rights

Faculty of Nursing
Adult care Nursing Department

In 2003, the International Council of Nurses commented that the outbreak of SARS could leave

nurses anxious regarding their own infection, and ostracized by their communities and families for

fear of becoming infected.

In Taiwan during the same year, over 160 health workers resigned or refused to treat SARS
patients in hospital, reflecting the high levels of anxiety in the community.

In response, the government threatened to remove their practice licenses.

In Canada, nurses in Toronto refused to work on specialist SARS wards, and called for a
government inquiry into the handling of the epidemic.

The Chinese government introduced draconian measures to control SARS, including the threat of

the death penalty, for those breaking public health laws.

In response to the epidemic’s effect on the health sector workplace, a Sectoral Working Paper
published by the International Labor Office suggested a number of measures.

These included: timely information dissemination, practical training of health professionals to

prevent the spread of SARS, participatory risk assessment and control, special attention for older

workers and immune compromised persons, attention to small facilities and rural sectors,

psychological and social support to SARS patients, and involvement of all workers in occupational
health and safety regulations. The paper recommended that long-term strategies in public health,

including development of the workforce, would help in the future fight against SARS and other as

yet unknown diseases.

2.8.5 Other diseases

The occasional outbreak of the highly lethal Ebola virus (which causes death in 50-90% of clinically

ill cases) or other hemorrhagic viruses poses acute risks to the population and to health care
personnel responding to the needs of the sick.

54 Academic Year 2025/2026