Wow, that was a close call! I didn't realize that my dad was in such danger, but now that I understand a little more about viruses and infections, it all makes perfect sense.
My name is Paul. I'm a junior in high school. It's not that I don't love my folks, but they aren't very exciting. My dad sells paper clips--not a particularly glamorous career. Dad certainly never had his picture in the newspaper-- at least not until last week.
Something happened last week that changed our lives. Dad was on a flight to Singapore, where he buys many of the paper clip products he sells. He noticed that several of the other passengers had really bad coughs. Ordinarily, he wouldn't even have given that fact a second thought, but earlier, during the same flight, he had read an article about SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome), and all the coughing had made him a little worried.
He mentioned his concerns to the flight attendant, who said that it was nothing to worry about--people cough on every flight. She suggested that my dad just relax. But Dad wasn't satisfied with that response. He walked around and wrote down the seat numbers of the people who were coughing, along with a brief physical description of each person. After the plane landed, Dad gave his information to the health officers at the immigration office. They treated him politely, but they probably thought he was a little crazy for being so concerned about a few people coughing.
It turned out that Dad had been right for worrying. The very next day, one of the coughers from the airplane went to the emergency room at the hospital in Singapore with a high fever, chills, and difficulty breathing. He was diagnosed as having SARS and was immediately isolated in the quarantine ward, so he would not infect anyone else. The authorities asked him to name all the people with whom he had been in close contact over the last few days, but that was impossible. He didn't know the names of any of the 204 other passengers from the flight he'd been on the day before. Luckily, a health officer at the airport immigration office remembered the man--my dad--who had come in with the list of coughing passengers. They found the list, rounded up the eight passengers, and isolated them all until they were no longer contagious.
Dad had stopped a serious SARS outbreak from happening. It could have affected up to 100,000 people in the country and caused as many as 15,000 deaths. The prime minister of Singapore gave my dad a medal of honor in a public ceremony of thanks. Dad was also featured on the cover of TIME magazine and on the front page of our local newspaper, The Guardian.
Now, the phone doesn't stop ringing. Reporters want to interview Dad, and they even try to speak with me to get my thoughts about having such a thoughtful and clever father.
After my dad's amazing experience, I listen to him when he gives advice about paying attention to what's going on around me! Being observant helped my dad prevent a dangerous disease from spreading and may have saved a lot of lives.*
Infection is defined as a disease resulting from the presence of certain microorganisms (living things that are too small to be seen without a microscope) in the body. These organisms (commonly called "germs") can be single-celled amoebas, bacteria, or tiny viruses. Usually, they enter our bodies through our mouth and nose when we breathe, eat contaminated foods, or come into close contact with an infected person. They can also enter through the eyes or be transmitted sexually. Microorganisms can also get inside our bodies through cuts or open wounds.
My name is Paul. I'm a junior in high school. It's not that I don't love my folks, but they aren't very exciting. My dad sells paper clips--not a particularly glamorous career. Dad certainly never had his picture in the newspaper-- at least not until last week.
Something happened last week that changed our lives. Dad was on a flight to Singapore, where he buys many of the paper clip products he sells. He noticed that several of the other passengers had really bad coughs. Ordinarily, he wouldn't even have given that fact a second thought, but earlier, during the same flight, he had read an article about SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome), and all the coughing had made him a little worried.
He mentioned his concerns to the flight attendant, who said that it was nothing to worry about--people cough on every flight. She suggested that my dad just relax. But Dad wasn't satisfied with that response. He walked around and wrote down the seat numbers of the people who were coughing, along with a brief physical description of each person. After the plane landed, Dad gave his information to the health officers at the immigration office. They treated him politely, but they probably thought he was a little crazy for being so concerned about a few people coughing.
It turned out that Dad had been right for worrying. The very next day, one of the coughers from the airplane went to the emergency room at the hospital in Singapore with a high fever, chills, and difficulty breathing. He was diagnosed as having SARS and was immediately isolated in the quarantine ward, so he would not infect anyone else. The authorities asked him to name all the people with whom he had been in close contact over the last few days, but that was impossible. He didn't know the names of any of the 204 other passengers from the flight he'd been on the day before. Luckily, a health officer at the airport immigration office remembered the man--my dad--who had come in with the list of coughing passengers. They found the list, rounded up the eight passengers, and isolated them all until they were no longer contagious.
Dad had stopped a serious SARS outbreak from happening. It could have affected up to 100,000 people in the country and caused as many as 15,000 deaths. The prime minister of Singapore gave my dad a medal of honor in a public ceremony of thanks. Dad was also featured on the cover of TIME magazine and on the front page of our local newspaper, The Guardian.
Now, the phone doesn't stop ringing. Reporters want to interview Dad, and they even try to speak with me to get my thoughts about having such a thoughtful and clever father.
After my dad's amazing experience, I listen to him when he gives advice about paying attention to what's going on around me! Being observant helped my dad prevent a dangerous disease from spreading and may have saved a lot of lives.*
Infection is defined as a disease resulting from the presence of certain microorganisms (living things that are too small to be seen without a microscope) in the body. These organisms (commonly called "germs") can be single-celled amoebas, bacteria, or tiny viruses. Usually, they enter our bodies through our mouth and nose when we breathe, eat contaminated foods, or come into close contact with an infected person. They can also enter through the eyes or be transmitted sexually. Microorganisms can also get inside our bodies through cuts or open wounds.