Open AccessInvestigation of febrile passengers detected by infrared thermal scanning at an international airport
Author(s) -
McBride William J. H.,
Buikstra Elizabeth,
FitzGerald Mary
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
australian and new zealand journal of public health
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.946
H-Index - 76
eISSN - 1753-6405
pISSN - 1326-0200
DOI - 10.1111/j.1753-6405.2010.00466.x
Subject(s) - international airport , public health , medicine , thermal infrared , environmental health , compensation (psychology) , medical emergency , business , transport engineering , psychology , engineering , pathology , infrared , physics , optics , psychoanalysis
Objective:To determine the best approach for the evaluation of fever, detected by infrared thermal scanning, at an international airport.Methods:Arriving passengers with fever were divided into three groups: community evaluation by a GP, with or without cost compensation, or evaluation at the airport by a health practitioner. Uptake of offered evaluations was measured, diagnoses were recorded, and region‐specific rates of fever measured. Observations were made on practical aspects of thermal screening.Results:Over a six‐month period, 181,759 passengers were screened for fever at the Cairns international airport, Queensland, Australia. Fever was identified in 118 (0.06%) of the arriving passengers and 76 were enrolled in the study. Only 19 of these passengers (25%) voluntarily underwent further evaluation. No differences were observed in the three approaches.Conclusions:Public health surveillance of febrile passengers arriving at an international airport should not rely on voluntary passenger participation for the detection of imported contagious diseases.