This video was made by a UK public hospital trust in 2010 about infections in hospitals
- This article is more than one year old.
- Published on March 20, 2020 at 03:45
- 2 min read
- By AFP Hong Kong
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The video was published here on Facebook on March 15, 2020. It has been viewed more than 180 times.
The four-minute 29-second footage shows how infections spread in hospitals through close contact.
Below is a screenshot of the misleading Facebook post:
The video’s simplified Chinese-language caption translates to English as: “Everyone take a look at the video above, see how quick the simulated transmission of the novel coronavirus filmed by Canadian CDC can be./Information about simulated novel coronavirus transmission./That's so quick, one will be infected right after contact, the video is very valuable, and can save many people's lives if widely spread, and prevent while we’re still safe…/So terrifying…I'm scared”.
The COVID-19 pandemic has killed more than 8,800 people worldwide and infected almost 210,000 others, as reported here by AFP on March 19.
Canada has confirmed 569 cases of COVID-19 across the country, including eight deaths, as of March 18, 2020. In response, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Canada would be closing its borders to all non-citizens and promised a sizable aid package for its people, reported here by AFP.
The video was also published here, here and here on Facebook; here, here and here on Twitter; and on YouTube here alongside a similar claim.
The claim is false; the video was produced by the University Hospitals Birmingham, a regional NHS hospital group in the UK, almost a decade before the COVID-19 outbreak.
Closer examination of the video shows a graphic titled “Infection Control: It’s in your hands”, bearing the NHS Foundation Trust's logo.
Below is a screenshot of the video in the misleading post at its final second:
A further keyword search found this YouTube video, titled “Infection control: break the chain”, published by University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust on May 26, 2010.
The video caption reads: “The "break the chain" video shows how easy it is for hospital-acquired infections like MRSA and Clostridium difficile to be spread.
“Please make sure you wash your hands and use the alcoholic hand gels when visiting our hospital.”
Below is a screenshot comparison of the video in the misleading Facebook post (L) and the University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust video (R):
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