Personal need outweighs public health.
So you KIND of came down with drug-resistant tuberculosis, so bad that doctors tell you to stay away from anyone. But you've got wedding plans. In Greece. So you get on a plane anyway. Then while honeymooning in Italy you get a phone call from the CDC, telling you your passport is flagged and you are FORBIDDEN to get on an airplane and should turn yourself in to the Italian authorities. What do you do? Find out what one man did here.
8 comments:
Sami
8219
This article was very interesting to read about. I thought it was very irresponsible of the man to go on an airplane after having told not to. He risked the chance of the other passengers on the plane to catch TB also. He should have stayed put where he was until someone had the ability to escort him out. I never knew how serious TB could be, but from the sound of it, I would not want to catch this disease/virus. I understand that the man was scared for his life, but he also put the lives of other passengers in danger. It's lucky for his wife that she didn't catch the virus. I just hope that the passengers on the plane didn't catch it.
Here's an interesting article I found on TB:
http://www.rickross.com/reference/cscience/cscience10.html
The initial decision by the passenger to leave the country after being diagnosed with TB is the first mistake. He should have rescheduled or made new reservations at a more local resort. However, I do feel that he made the right decision by coming home from Italy. Personally I would have gone to Germany and been "detained" there. I feel like staying in Italy would be a bad option. I'm curious why Czech air officials let him on the plane to get back to the US. I would have thought anyone with TB would be restricted from an international flight. While I disagree with his initial desicion, I feel like in the end he made the right move.
Here is another interesting article on an individual traveling with TB.
http://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/abstract/334/15/933
Karl 4553
Carole 2034
I think it was pretty careless for that man to go on a plane that is closely packed with people in an enclosed area and more than likely endanger the people around that man. Even though he may not have been showing any symptoms that the time he was on the plane, that doesn’t justify his actions because tuberculosis is a serious, contagious disease. No matter how “well-educated, successful, [or] intelligent” the man claims, he should have known well enough to think of the consequences of taking a plane and go out of the country. If it was for my wedding, I would have wanted to go but I would have at least thought about others and have gone somewhere else in the state. If the man did not leave the country, then none of the TB testings and the tracking down of people would have happened.
Here’s a link that shows the different types of tuberculosis and their symptoms: http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/534783_print
Brandon Mead 5818
I read this article and got quite scared because I know that certain diseases are very contagious. I was really not aware that tuberculosis is as contagious as it is and was really stunned to see that it could be passed through traveling. I'm actually quite appalled that this man still tried to get on the plane when he knew that he could possibly infect the other passengers and pass this very dangerous virus down along the line. It is fascinating that the disease didn't spread to a much greater population that it did.
I found an article discussing the contagiousness of tuberculosis.
http://www.lungusa.org/site/pp.asp?c=dvLUK9O0E&b=35778
Nicholas 9969
These kind of events always remind me how difficult it is to achieve total security in public places. It seems like the doctor who diagnosed this patient with TB should have some form of authority or oversight to prevent this man from boarding an aircraft. With the incredible amount of transparency governments and businesses are able to create through effective use of technology, it seems like society has not taken full advantage of this opportunity. If something doesn't change soon, the threat for an epidemic is actually very real due to the sheer number of people using public forms of transport all over the world, including passenger planes.
Here's an interesting study on the spread of TB in New York City and London: http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/eid/vol6no1/hayward.htm
Jon - 5906
Well from following the story, it appears that he only really had a small risk for transmitting the disease because he still did not carry the telltale symptoms of TB. Of course it seems like common sense that he should have stayed in the US or at least in Italy (after an appearingly bad mix up of info between him and a CDC official)
Here is the updated info on Mr. Speaker:
http://edition.cnn.com/2007/HEALTH/conditions/06/04/tb.groom/
Silvestre
3714
This article is not only a medical disaster but also in a way a national security breach. How is that a man who is diagnosised with one of the most dangerous strains of TB allowed to travel after being flagged. How is it more importantly that he is not stopped in the border when he flagged. Custom agents are supposedly highly trained and alert at what they have to look out for. He is lucky that the bacteria/virus did not develop any more because then he would be seriously in a hospital in Europe, or more likely dead. Well at least it can be said that he had a memorable honeymoon, and that some of the vows have been strengthened.
This should be seen ... http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/rr5211a1.htm
Bryan 4270
First thing I thought of was what would I have done. He basically did everything I would not do. Frankly, his decisions were irresponsible and downright stupid. Nothing gives you the right to put people in harms way especially when it is done knowingly. He should have rescheduled and waited to see what could be done about his problem. I have very limited sympathy for him right now.
I am also a little fearful because he was able to get into the US with a red-flagged passport. This says alot about how much control we have over our borders. Eek.
Here is some interesting things I found on the CDC website about a vaccination for TB.
http://www.cdc.gov/tb/pubs/tbfactsheets/bcg.htm
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