Travelers want notification of possible disease exposure

AORN Journal, Sept, 2004

Most air travelers (ie, 94%) would want to be contacted in the event that they may have been exposed to a serious contagious disease while on an airplane, and most are willing to provide additional information to aid public health authorities in this effort, according to a July 19, 2004, news release from the Harvard School of Public Health, Boston. Study data were gathered from interviews conducted with 1,006 US adults, of whom 630 take one or more domestic flights per year, and 240 take one or more international flights per year.

International air travelers currently are required to give emergency contact information to the airlines. The majority of international travelers said they would be willing to provide

* the name and telephone number of someone who could be contacted in case of emergency (89%);

* contact information for a cellular telephone, pager, or handheld wireless e-mail that they travel with (88%); and

* addresses and telephone numbers to the places they would be staying while traveling (73%).

Seven percent of the international travelers surveyed were unwilling to provide any contact information, and 4% were not sure.

Domestic air travelers currently are not required to give emergency contact information to the airlines. Of those surveyed, 93% were willing to provide one or more types of contact information, 5% were unwilling to provide any information, and 2% were unsure.

Although the majority of travelers surveyed were willing to provide contact information, most were not willing to take a lot of time to do so. Sixty-six percent of international travelers and 61% of domestic travelers were not willing to give emergency contact information if providing it took 10 minutes or Longer. Survey participants also stated that the most convenient time to provide emergency contact information would be when making the airline reservation. The worldwide epidemic of severe acute respiratory syndrome in 2003 highlighted the difficulties public health officials may have in quickly notifying air passengers of possible disease exposure after the passengers have left the airport.

Survey Finds Most Air Travelers Want to Be Contacted After Possible Exposure to a Serious Contagious Disease, (news release, Boston: Harvard School of Public Health, July 19, 2004) http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/press /releases/press07192004.html (accessed 23 July 2004).