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Review
. 2020 Apr 30;2(2):63-65.
doi: 10.35772/ghm.2020.01038.

Challenges of COVID-19 outbreak on the cruise ship Diamond Princess docked at Yokohama, Japan: a real-world story

Hanako Jimi  1 , Gaku Hashimoto  2
Affiliations
Review

Challenges of COVID-19 outbreak on the cruise ship Diamond Princess docked at Yokohama, Japan: a real-world story

Hanako Jimi et al. Glob Health Med. .

Abstract

The event of the Diamond Princess, with a total of 712 (as of 17 March 2020) persons infected on the cruise ship, attracted global attention as the largest disease cluster outside China for the period 7 to 24 February 2020. Representing the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, the authors were heavily engaged in the quarantine operation on the cruise ship ourselves. During the quarantine period from 5 to 23 February 2020, when the last group of the quarantined passengers left the ship, a series of measures have been conducted under the principles of i) zero deaths among all on board, ii) rapid establishment and thorough implementation of an infection control system, and iii) maintenance of health conditions and relief of anxieties among passengers and crew members. The case of Diamond Princess has implications of more than a cruise ship but deserves full scientific analysis to learn lessons from this operation as well as to study the characteristics, particularly the transmission of COVID-19.

Keywords: COVID-19; Diamond Princess; cruise ship; quarantine.

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Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
(A), Authors with members from the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare and medical team after the disembarkment of all passengers and crew members; (B), Authors after the completion of mission (left: Jimi, right: Hashimoto).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. World Health Organization. Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) Situation Reports. https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019/situatio... (accessed April 15, 2020).
    1. National Institute of Infectious Diseases. Field Briefing: Diamond Princess COVID-19 Cases, 20 Feb Update. https://www.niid.go.jp/niid/en/2019-ncov-e/9417-covid-dp-fe-02.html (accessed April 15, 2020).
    1. Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare. Background Document 1, the Third Meeting of the Expert Taskforce meeting on the new coronavirus infection, 24 February 2020. http://www.kantei.go.jp/jp/singi/novel_coronavirus/senmonkakaigi/sidai_r... (accessed April 16, 2020) (in Japanese).
    1. National Institute of Infectious Diseases. Field Briefing: Diamond Princess COVID-19 Cases. Published 19 February 2020. https://www.niid.go.jp/niid/en/2019-ncov-e/9407-covid-dp-fe-01.html (accessed April 16, 2020).

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