SARS tab on 2,200 international passengers

AHMEDABAD: As a precautionary measure,the state government has instructed all officials of the health departmentposted in different districts to follow up the medical status of 2,200passengers, who have arrived at the city''s international airport since April 3.Health officials are sending a daily list of all internationalpassengers, who plan to stay in different districts of the state, to concernedofficials. They have been asked to contact such passengers within 12 days tocheck whether they are showing symptoms of SARS. "This is part ofthe statewide alert to identify SARS patients, if any, so that they don''t poseany danger to others. Screening and following up of international passengers isthe only wayout," says a health department official. Dr BSBhavsar, professor in the preventive and social medicine department of BJMedical College, says a team of doctors is screening all internationalpassengers. "Earlier, we used to examine passengers from Singapore, Hong Kongand SARS-affected countries. Now, after reports of infection in some othercountries, we are not taking chances and examining passengers coming from allcountries," he adds. After screening all incoming passengers forsigns of SARS, they are interviewed and asked to fill up forms enlisting theircontact addresses and telephone numbers. Since many of them are from differentparts of the state, the health department sends the forms to concerned districtofficials to follow up the case. "We have received a list of 75people who arrived at the city airport from foreign countries and are living inAhmedabad district. Of these, 38 are in the city. The AMC health officials arefollowing up cases in the city and the district health officials are doing thejob in other places," says Ahmedabad''s chief district health officer KN Kotak. While health officials have started calling up passengers, thereare some who have not received any call. For instance, Dimple Girish of Jodhpur,who arrived at Ahmedabad airport on April 10, has not received any call tilldate. The form she filled sought to know whether she suffered from symptomssimilar to those of SARS. "I wrote I did not visit Hong Kong, was at the airportonly and have none of the symptoms of SARS," she says. There areothers, like Kaushik Patel, receiving calls from health officials. Some, likeGargi Patel, say they have not received any call after the initial interview."That''s not necessary as I have no symptoms of SARS," adds Gargi.