How to warn Pinoys in HK vs 'swine flu'? Text them

MANILA, Philippines - Realizing the power of texting to disseminate information faster, the Philippine consulate in Hong Kong has resorted to text-brigades in order to warn Filipinos, mostly household service workers, against the deadly H1N1 flu virus (aka 'swine flu'). Filipino community leaders tasked to disseminate the information will receive text messages from the Philippine post should there be new advisories from Hong Kong’s department of health, Consul General Claro Cristobal said. Cristobal is aware that the 125,000 Filipino maids in Hong Kong are at most risk to the deadly virus since they are sometimes subjected to unsanitary conditions due to their line of work. Susan Ople, an advocate of Filipino migrants, had earlier urged the government to inform Filipino maids, farmers and those in agri-business abroad who are at most risk to the disease but are less likely to have ready television or Internet access. [See: Maids, farmers abroad may not hear about 'swine flu'] On Sunday, some 200 Filipino community leaders met with Cristobal to discuss the safety measures to avoid catching the deadly flu. The Philippine consulate is also keeping tabs with the Filipinos by getting their cellphone numbers and E-mail addresses. "Almost everyone has a cellphone in Hong Kong," Cristobal told GMANews.TV in an interview, "There are Internet cafes in every corner too." A Mexican tourist visiting Hong Kong was diagnosed with swine flu Friday in Asia's first confirmed case of the disease, the Associated Press reported. [See: Hong Kong reports Asia's 1st confirmed swine flu case.] Officials ordered a weeklong quarantine of the Metropark Hotel where the 25-year-old man stayed and started tracking down his recent contacts. The hotel has about 200 guests and 100 staff, Director of Health Lam Ping-yan said. No Filipino is reported to be among the guests or crew. Even before the swine flu case emerged, Hong Kong officials had already stepped up precautions, screening visitors for fever and ordering air travelers to fill out health declaration forms. The government also launched a citywide cleanup. Public toilets are being cleaned every two hours and escalators in wet markets are wiped down every hour. In contrast with its tough measures Friday, the Hong Kong government was accused of responding slowly when the city was hit by SARS in 2003. Severe acute respiratory syndrome spread to the territory from southern China when an infected doctor checked into a Hong Kong hotel. He later died in a local hospital, but not before infecting a Hong Kong resident and 16 other hotel guests, who in turn spread the virus internationally. SARS eventually killed more than 770 people, including 299 in Hong Kong. Meanwhile, Cristobal said that they are closely monitoring the situation in Hong Kong and would inform the public right away should a Filipino catch the disease. "What we are doing is a community network approach and the Filipino community leaders will be the conduits of information," Cristobal said. The Philippine government has scheduled a summit on the Influenza A (H1N1) virus strain on May 13, after a meeting of health ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) this week. [See: RP sets own summit on H1N1 virus next week] - Mark Joseph H. Ubalde, GMANews.TV