As part of joint efforts in responding to disaster 

COVID-19 opened up opportunities for the affected countries to cooperate with each other in the containment of it. The disease caused by the coronavirus originated in Wuhan, China and took its toll on the lives and economy of that country before it turned out to be a global pandemic later.   
China dealt with the pandemic first and contained it. So, it has better experience and expertise in responding to the pandemic. As part of Sino-Lanka bilateral cooperation in fighting COVID-19, the Chinese book ‘Prevention and Control of COVID-19’ edited by Professor Zhang Wenhong has been translated into Sinhala. The book is seen as part of experience sharing by the two countries in responding to the disaster. It is a volume compiled in such a manner that even an ordinary person can use it as a guide for health practices. The Sinhala translation is a timely exercise since people have to live with COVID-19 for some time.   

"The world has witnessed pandemics in its history. Spanish Flu that broke out in 1818, exactly a century ago, claimed the lives of 50 million people. The other viral diseases that kept public life at risk in recent history are Ebola in 1976, AIDS in 1980, SARS in 2003 and MARS in 2012"

The translated book was launched at the Chinese Embassy in Sri Lanka recently. The copies were handed over to the Education Ministry and Health Ministry. It has been translated to Sinhala by Lakshman Saparamadu.
Chargé d’affaires of the Chinese Embassy Hu Wei said the book would be very helpful for the public and hailed the efforts undertaken by the translator in this regard.   
Additional Secretary of the Ministry of Health Dr. Lakshmi Somatunga said at the event to mark the occasion, China had shown the world on how to help others.   
Pathfinder Foundation Executive Director Laxman Siriwardane said the book includes many health practices and guidelines to all.   

Professor Wenhong is a leading Chinese expert in infectious diseases and was Head of the Shanghai COVID-19 Treatment Expert Group. He is also the Director of the Department of Infectious Diseases, Huashan Hospital of Fudan University.
All the vital details regarding the virus are chronicled in the book, and it is useful for anyone for a proper understanding of the nature of the disease and measures for its prevention.   
According to the book, 80 percent of infected people recover without any treatment for symptoms. Likewise, as the book says, one-sixth of the patients develop critical symptoms such as respiratory problems. Elderly people, those with heart trouble and diabetics and people with disabilities, are more vulnerable to the disease. Relatively, small children are less likely to develop complications as the book says.

The book has been compiled as a guide for anyone to protect himself or herself from the disease. Fever, fatigue and dry cough are the common systems of this disease whereas runny nose, blocked nose, sore throat, mild fever and diarrhoea can also be viewed as symptoms in certain instances.   
The world is in a race against time to develop a vaccine. Russia recently declared that it developed a vaccine. Commercial manufacturing of any vaccine is not in the foreseeable future. In most cases, development of a vaccine against the virus is still at experimental level. So, infected persons are required to be cautious until their symptoms disappear.   

"It is a volume compiled in such a manner that even an ordinary person can use it as a guide for health practices. The Sinhala translation is a timely exercise since people have to live with COVID-19 for some time"

The world has witnessed pandemics in its history. Spanish Flu that broke out in 1818, exactly a century ago, claimed the lives of 50 million people. The other viral diseases that kept public life at risk in recent history are Ebola in 1976, AIDS in 1980, SARS in 2003 and MARS in 2012. 
Today, COVID-19 has become a pandemic spreading at a galloping pace in the world though some countries including Sri Lanka have effectively contained its spread. The book is valuable in that sense because it contains guidelines and health practices needed for the effective control of the spread of the disease.   

The book contains guidelines on wearing face masks and quarantine measures. According to the book, hand washing or sanitization is needed for ordinary people, but the use of hand gloves is a compulsory requirement for health workers and those working at crowded places.   
The book says there is no need for ordinary people to wear goggles as a precaution. But, one should be careful not to touch your eyes with contaminated hands. The book is available in digital form on https://bit.ly/3hCJQIZ .