Greetings all,
Thanks Chris for you information on SARS. Not 10 days ago I travelled from
Belfast, Northern Ireland, to Perth, WA via London and Singapore.
On the advice of my sister a senior nurse in Toronto Canada, I travelled Mask,
all the way, changing masks every 6 hours. I did not wear the gloves Jenny
recommended, however, I was stringent about personal hygiene carrying anti-
bacterial soap and not touching anything directly except when eating. I removed
the mask to eat - and this raises lots of questions ofcourse. At check points I
was also asked to remove mask for identification.
The further east I travelled more people wore masks yet much less than I
expected, on last leg one steward was masked from Singapore to Perth.
This time next week May 1st, I will be in the air again enroute to Zist via
Singapore and London and wearing "TB" quality masks as before for entire
journey, others I am told are next to useless.
Some may regard my precautions as excessive/obsessive, however over the last 5
years I have flown long haul "too often" and have acquired a hypersensitivity
to dust and bacteria in air-conditioning. My GP today stated the greatest risk
in travel to be the air-conditioning.
Zist I would not miss and it was with great regret that circumstances
necessitated my withdrawal from conference.
Thanks for all the chats, which I've tried to follow from South Africa,
Belfast, so often I wanted to respond yet other business took priority and now
back home in Fremantle I looking forward to active participation, post ZIST.
Safe travels to everyone and joyful experiences conferencing and training.
Regards,
Heather
Heather Deighan
PS
An email today from Denis Ladbrook, my partner ...
Guess where I went today? Zist. I dropped in to check the joint out
You'll love the place,
I think.
Tomorrow I go to Wurzburg ...
Some of the 14 Australians going to Zist in early May have already left. Most
are leaving next week. Good luck to all.
I spoke to staff at the Austin hospital infectious diseases unit re SARS.
They suggested wearing masks and being obsessive about your hand washing when
transiting through the Asian airports. They didn't seem to think it was
necessary to wear masks on the planes unless someone was coughing nearby.
The best official information is on the CDC site:
http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/sars/travel_advice.htm
They don't yet recommend wearing masks in the airports. They say:
Before you leave:
a.. Assemble a travel health kit containing basic first aid and medical
supplies. Be sure to include a thermometer, household disinfectant, a supply
of surgical masks and disposable gloves (for use if you or someone you are
travelling with becomes ill with SARS), and alcohol-based hand rubs for hand
hygiene.
b.. Inform yourself and others who may be travelling with you about SARS.
For information about this illness, see CDC's SARS Web site.
While you are in an area with SARS:
a.. To protect against SARS infection, wash your hands frequently.
b.. To minimize the possibility of infection, you may wish to avoid close
contact with large numbers of people as much as possible. CDC does not
recommend the routine use of masks or other personal protective equipment
while in public areas.
hope this is helpful
hasta la vista
Chris Walsh
My Website:
www.constellationflow.com
or
www.cwalsh.com.au
