# Drug resistant TB patient is quarantined



## Flight-LP (May 30, 2007)

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070530/ap_on_he_me/tuberculosis_infection 

Interesting story. Some people are just completely stupid and selfish.

He should have never been allowed on the plane in the first place.

Hope this one has a happy ending for the other unsuspecting passengers.


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## VentMedic (May 30, 2007)

His health care providers dropped the ball when they did not insist that he volunarily commit to inpatient treatment.  Every State has public health laws on the books for tuberculosis. Unfortunately doctors are hesitant to get the public health department involved immediately due to red tape and potential of infringement on patient's rights.  The doctor of course has to report positive TB cases.  But, due to the bogged down system, the doctor is rarely accountable after that. 

In the pulmonary lab, we see patients everyday for AFB sputum cultures and/or skin testing.  Sometimes the sputum comes back positive a few days later.  It is up to the physician to notify the patient. It is up to the patient to then make an appointment to come in.  The physician may not be able "to work the patient in" the schedule for weeks.  That's the system.  

There is still one TB hospital left in the States, A.G. Holley State Hospital in Lantana, Florida.

http://www.doh.state.fl.us/agholley/


Tuberculosis training districts
http://sntc.medicine.ufl.edu/About.aspx

Hopefully this is patient 0 and not 1 or 2.


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## BossyCow (May 30, 2007)

I have to have the chest xrays instead of skin tests for TB.  My last skin test caused an allergic reaction that left a scar on my forearm about the size of a dime.  That was 7 years ago.


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## MMiz (May 30, 2007)

The story goes:

Pt find out that he is positive for TB, that his TB *will not* respond to medications, and is asked to wait on the honeymoon.

He flies off on his honeymoon, and is contacted by the CDC and told he needs to stay where he is.  The local police/health officials are contacted and are told to quarantine him.  Local police investigate, say they can't hold him against his will, but ask him to stay put until CDC figures out what to do.

He doesn't listen, even though he knows that he is on the US no-fly list and the CDC is after him.  He finally flies back to Canada and drives to the US, where he is captured and quarantined.

Seems fairly selfish to me.


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## Airwaygoddess (May 31, 2007)

Selfish does not even come close.......:glare:


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## Ian Philbrick (May 31, 2007)

*Mdr & Xdr Tb*

Hi all,

Just to give you some sort of perspective from South Africa.

The Mine Hospital that I worked at providing and EMS for the mines has two wards solely for TB patients. There is a lot of TB amongst the mostly migrant workforce usually related to HIV/AIDS. There is a further ward for the Multi Drug Resistant TB patients: btween 40 and 50 at a time. Mortality rate for MDR TB is 50%. These wards have UV lighting and are aired to kill the bacteria.

Extremely Drug Resistant TB has also been identified in SA some time last year. It has a high mortality rate especially with those who are immunocompromised.

There are still further patients who are no longer infectious who have their treatment via DOTS (directly observed treatment short course) at the medical stations next to their hostel.

The person reffered to in the post is extremely selfish, not only to others in the plane, but more so to his wife with whom he has close contact and has the greatest risk of contracting the disease.

Regards,


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## Flight-LP (May 31, 2007)

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070601/ap_on_re_us/tuberculosis_infection

Here's some irony..............He's a personal injury Lawyer who's father-in-law works for the CDC and specializes in TB...........hmmmmmmm


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## StrokedOut (Jun 1, 2007)

... and I quote from the article ...

Speaker's father told WSB-TV: "The way he's been shown and spoken about on TV, it's like a terrorist traveling around the world escaping authorities. It's blown out of proportion immensely."
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"He's a great guy. Gregarious," said Pam Hood, a former neighbor. "He's a wonderful guy. Just a very, very pleasant man."
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Ok, so someone walking/flying around KNOWING they have a life-threatening pathogen isn't a "terrorist"? Blown out of proportion immensely? OH COME ON!! If this person was anyone other than a family member of theirs, I would be willing to bet they would be the first in line for a lawsuit. 

Great guys don't put hundreds or thousands of people at risk like this one did ...


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## TKO (Jun 1, 2007)

I would be willing to question this whole situation EXCEPT that he demonstrates his awesome disregard for everyone else when he flies about despite his orders not to and then flees back home because he is scared that he will die.  So what his actions appear to say is that he knows how serious his TB is since he has only faith in the US medical system to help him, and that he doesn't care about anyone else being at risk.

Going from the story presented here, if even one person develops TB from his cavalier disregard for every other human except himself, then I think he should spend every last day he has left in a jail cell.


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## Ridryder911 (Jun 1, 2007)

Terrorists, maybe not the exact words, but he does have a form of potential agent that is comparable to the same actions, and can be spread rapidly and undetectable, He as willingly knew this and jeopordized other on purpose. So yes, place his butt in solitary jail, or asylum like they used to for TB patients, that was non-compliant. 

R/r 911


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## TKO (Jun 1, 2007)

It says that after it was revealed that he was a personal injury attorney that people were outraged, and that gives us the sense that people view this as irony or just typical of a tort lawyer.  But what really bothers me is that he makes his living on suing us and others claiming that we should know or have done better for his clients, and that he is the professional voice for victims to make sure that health care is policed.  

So he pleads ignorance of his condition, that doctors didn't tell him that he couldn't fly.  Except we learn that his father-in-law is a specialist in TB with the CDC.  And what does he do?  He takes his diseased carcass on a whirlwind adventure around the world in a flying cigar tube of recycled air and people.

If I were a personal injury lawyer, I would be deeply offended.  And the real irony is that certainly someone will sue him.


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## StrokedOut (Jun 2, 2007)

Wouldn't this be JUST the kind of thing he would rub his disgusting & selfish hands together for? Jeez, if he had a client who wanted to sue for this very thing, he would be all over it.


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## BossyCow (Jun 4, 2007)

Are we forgetting that the chances of someone contracting this disease from him was very low.  That he did not have an active case of the disease and was not coughing.  How many of his seat mates have found to be positive for the disease?  

I understand that when the CDC says 'stay put' he should have, but lets not go off the deep end of the paranoia pool on this one.


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## Jay114 (Jun 7, 2007)

Agreed Bossy, yet what worries me is the ease he had in evading a supposed "no-fly" order.


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