www.chinaview.cn  2009-05-03 23:01:06 |   Print |
By Naim-Ul-Karim DHAKA, May 3 (Xinhua) -- "Are you from any swine flu infected country? Please take the form and let us know your health status by filing-up it," a Bangladeshi health official repeated the sentences to inbound passengers at the country's main airport on Sunday. A sanitary inspector of Bangladesh's Health Ministry, Ashrafunnessa Chowdhury, was seen distributing the small-sized form "Self Declaration of Health Status" among the passengers upontheir arrival at the Zia International Airport in the capital city Dhaka. Like Chowdhury, several officials were also uttering the same sentences to the inbound passengers with the questionnaire like whether they have been suffering from fever, cough, running or sneezing nose. Health officials were also seen busy with distribution of leaflets on Influenza A/H1N1 (initially known as swine flu) preventive measures among the inbound passengers to heighten their alertness. Besides, many banners and placards were hanged up at almost all corners and walls of the immigration floors of the airport to draw the attention of the inbound passengers about the disease Influenza A/H1N1. There is one banner which reads, "Pls report to Health Support Desk and fill-up the form about self declaration of health status if you are arriving from Mexico, U.S., Canada, Spain..." 14 countries and regions were mentioned. "We've taken all possible measures to prevent the disease," Secretary of the Bangladesh's Ministry of Civil Aviation and Tourism Hedayetullah Al Mamoon, who was visiting the airport ground, told Xinhua on Sunday. He said same measures have been taken to prevent the disease in other international airports of the country, including one in southeastern Chittagong city and one in northeastern Sylhet city. Director of the country's National Influenza Center under the Health Ministry Mahmudur Rahman said, "We're quite ready to test swab in the shortest possible time if any one is found to be carrying symptoms of the disease." If the swab test is positive, Rahman said, then the passengers will be advised to get admission to a government hospital, where a special unit has been set up to treat suspected A/H1N1 flu-affected patients. He said health officials are carrying out their duties round the clock in different shifts so that none can enter without test in Bangladesh, a country of more than 144 million people. In context of swift global spread of the flu, the authorities started to test inbound passengers at the Zia International Airport from Thursday. Rahman, however, confirmed that so far there is no report of the flu infection in Bangladesh. Sanitary Inspector Chowdhury said, "We've found one passenger only with flu symptom on Saturday but he was tested negative. Thanks God." Panic, however, seems to be gripping international passengers who were arriving at the airport as some passengers in Bangladesh's neighboring India were referred to hospitals after they showed symptoms of the flu recently. "I'm a bit nervous though I'm not with that symptoms," a passenger who came from a European country via a Gulf state said on condition of anonymity after collecting the self declaration form. "But It's good to see that Bangladesh has attached great importance to prevent the disease. They (health officials) are doing the job nicely," he further said. Many outbound passengers were also seemed to be worried although doctors were not asking them to fill up any form. Some said Bangladesh was relatively safer than those countries which they are leaving for. An outbound passenger Wang Po-Hsuan leaving for China's Taiwan Province said, "I have already collected facial mask to ensure personal safety." Like Po-Han, many foreigners were also seen collecting leaflets and asking the health ministry helpline desk about the preventive measures in details as they leave the country. |
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