Health officials in Toronto, Canada handed a health-care employee an order to remain in quarantine after the worker went to a church and funeral services over the weekend despite showing symptoms of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), the Canadian Press reports. For a Limited Time receive a
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Download Now"I believe this individual came in contact with hundreds of individuals,"
says Dr. Hanif Kassam, York Region medical officer of health. "He should
have known that he is potentially at risk. He should not have attended the funeral
home or the church…We cannot win this battle against SARS unless we have
the assurance and the public's assistance, particularly those put under quarantine."
Kassam issued the health-care worker a Section 22 order, which requires an
individual to remain in quarantine until he is no longer infectious, the news agency
reports. To date, he has issued 13 of these orders. He says the public should
take health warnings and orders seriously. If an individual fails to obey a
Section 22 order, Kassam can issue a Section 35 order, which allows police to
forcibly confine a person, and the individual could face up to $5,000 in fines per day.
Over the weekend, health officials issued a warning that a nurse showing symptoms of SARS
rode a commuter train to and from a hospital in Toronto. They asked six people who were riding near the nurse on the train to stay home and contact the health department, the
news agency reports.
In the United States, there have been 38 probable cases of SARS and no deaths,
according to the World Health Organization.
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