Thailand Plans Influenza 2009 Screening On Aircrafts

[george]

Thailand plans influenza 2009 screening on planes

BANGKOK: -- Department of Disease Control is proposing the screening of passengers with flu-like symptom on incoming aircrafts and stepping up monitoring measures at all international airports, said Director General Dr Somchai Chakrabhand.

Health officials wearing protective gear will take the temperatures of passengers, he said. Cooperation from airlines, airport, and health officials is needed, Somchai, adding such measures have been adopted in some countries like Japan.

Public Health spokesperson Suphan Srithamma said that the Ministry of Public Health has 22 cases with flu-like symptoms currently under surveillance, awaiting lab test results. Included in this number is the husband of the German tourist, who died of pneumonia on Monday.

The husband of the German tourist has developed a mild fever after his wife's death with flu-like symptoms. Public health authorities confirmed that she did not have the A(H1N1) flu virus, but succumbed to common flu and pneumonia.

The World Health Organization has confirmed at least 8,829 human cases of swine flu in nearly 40 countries, including 83 known deaths.

-- The Nation 2009-05-20

[wpcoe]

Health officials wearing protective gear will take the temperatures of passengers, he said. Cooperation from airlines, airport, and health officials is needed, Somchai, adding such measures have been adopted in some countries like Japan.

Uh oh. I hope it's *not* like Japan. Arrivals from the USA into Japan require a small squadron of medical folks in protective gear taking the temperature of each passenger and crew member, and a full 747 can take over an hour, *especially* if someone shows a high temperature. Then, the surrounding passengers/crew are kept on board waiting for some sort of secondary test results to show negative before they are released. I talked to some flight crew members who were held on board for more than 1.5 hours, and that was after working a 14-hour flight from Washington D.C.

Any reports on which flights into Thailand will be targeted?

[svenivan]

Good Idea Thailand! And send it as a pressrelease to all TV-stations, newspapers etc etc .

Then we will have no problems with tourists rest of the year!

[JohnGotti]

So what exactly caused her to test positive the first time when the hospital official announced that she tested positive before the government official could give the correct analysis?

[Thai at Heart]

Well then, obviously after they mish mashed the message of someone who had but didn't have swine flu and unfortunately died of complications due to pneumonia, they are going to screen passengers.

Their attempts are so laughable, but obviously the bull has bolted the gate. Why don't they just tell any hospital in the country that anyone who comes in coughing and spluttering on their last legs gets quarantined and treated with tamiflu?

Why should it take Thai airways to implement procedures that are at best ineffective and in excess of every other airline in the world to identify a passenger who lands in the country and gets sick 5 days later?

[stumonster]

top idea - when most of the international transit is via land borders

[Thai at Heart]

Not possible when it would take the coordinated effort of 3 or 4 organisations and ministries.

Immigration, police and health actually working together to correctly identify who gets off a plane, where they are staying, whom they travelled with and that a person is actually sick. In Thailand an absolute impossibility.

[Carmine6]

It says "screening of passengers with flu-like symptom..." Not screening of every plane and every passenger.

What would everyone have them do? Just ignore passengers with flu symptoms? The western media would have a field day with any influenza 2009 transmission in Thailand. As would TV members.

[johnboy72]

Not possible when it would take the coordinated effort of 3 or 4 organisations and ministries.

Immigration, police and health actually working together to correctly identify who gets off a plane, where they are staying, whom they travelled with and that a person is actually sick. In Thailand an absolute impossibility.

Absolutely... Organisation is the key word and one that does not appear often in the Thai vocabulary.

[harrry]

Arrival screening, and possibly departure screening will not stop the disease eventually spreading but it will slow this spread considerably. THis givesmore time to come up with other measures such as eveloping and manafacturing a suitible vaccine.

[nonthaburial]

This procedure is in place at Kunming Airport. Last 2 TG flights I have been on had their schedules totally disrupted as it adds another 1-2 hours on turn round. But if it helps to stop the spread then we have to endure it

Edited May 21, 2009 by nonthaburial