VOA标准英语2009年-Egyptian Swine Flu Polices Under Scrutiny

By Jessica Desvarieux
Cairo
28 September 2009

 
A CDC Image of H1N1 influenza¹ virus
With the global concern over the H1N1 swine flu virus rising, some tourists are finding themselves inside a quarantine cell as their
first sightseeing experience. Egypt is attempting to curb² the virus with strict measures, but its policies and quarantine system
have some questioning their efficiency.

With about 900 confirmed cases of swine flu, the Egyptian government has taken a number of controversial steps to fight the spread of the virus, including the closure of all schools until October 3.

Last month, the government banned elderly Egyptians and those younger than 25 from traveling to Mecca, Saudi Arabia for their Umrah or lesser³ pilgrimage.

Director of the Michigan Center for Public Health Preparedness Dr. JoLynn Montgomery understands the Egyptian government's concern; Cairo is a densely⁴ populated city of about 20 million and millions of pilgrims from around the world travel to Mecca.

"Certainly time in very crowded areas will result in cases of influenza right now," Dr. Montgomery. "I do know that Mecca is a big calling and a big issue and not being allowed to go is obviously a big issue for them [Muslims], but those locations have proved to be a big opportunity for spreading disease."

But some health experts and organizations like the World Health Organization have not always viewed Egyptian government measures as reasonable.

Earlier this year, the government ordered the killing⁵ of all pigs in Egypt despite WHO officials calling it a misguided attempt to
combat the H1N1 virus.

Then in June, the Egyptian government quarantined about 150 people residing in an American University of Cairo dormitory for a week after two students tested positive for the virus.

In Egypt, the policy is to quarantine those suspected of having swine flu. And as this reporter experienced firsthand, anyone is a suspect.

Out of the approximately 250 passengers aboard a recent flight from New York, I was the one person ushered⁶ to the side while an airport employee handed me a disposable thermometer.

They told me I had a fever and would have to wear a white hospital mask. Feeling completely healthy, this was definitely not the warm welcome to Egypt I had in mind.

A young woman wearing a headscarf and oversized sunglasses introduced herself as Dr. Germine. She said I would have to go to a hospital where they would "investigate" if I had swine flu. With my navy blue American passport between her fingers, there seemed to be not much of a choice.

The American Embassy, like many others, cannot directly intervene if a private citizen is held upon arrival in a foreign country.

But chief of American Citizens Services in Cairo Yolanda Parra says citizens do have rights.

"If you find yourself in a situation that you're not comfortable with or you have questions about definitely reach out to your embassy right away," said Yolanda Parra. "You can ask anyone at that medical facility that you please want to speak to your embassy and they will comply."

At the hospital, Dr. Germine announced that I would have to pay $300 for a throat swab test and 24-hour observation.

I refused to pay. The charge then dropped to $100 and I refused again. After a call to the American embassy, the charge was dropped.

Parra says that it is not standard procedure for governments to charge those quarantined but it can depend on the procedure.

"Each case is different," she said. "We on your behalf make sure that the payments that they're asking for are valid⁷ but in that particular case we investigated and the person didn't have to pay anything."

The quarantine area where the throat swab test was processed was, surprisingly, filled with energy. Muffled⁸ voices of children carried across the courtyard as they played soccer with surgical⁹ masks on. But with a closer look, it was clear many patients were
coughing and moving sluggishly¹⁰ nearby.

People apparently¹¹ infected with H1N1 interacted with those under observation.

The WHO does not recommend the mixing of those infected and those under observation. It says it's critical for national authorities to distance patients and avoid crowding.

Dr. Montgomery says it's the government's responsibility to uphold these quarantine standards.

"Whether it's mandatory¹² or not, they're playing a role in protecting the rest of us by doing that and so there should be respect and care given to people who are in those situations," said Dr. Montgomery.

Numerous requests for comment from the Egyptian Ministry¹³ of Health were not answered.

The Ministry of Health has recently announced that when schools re-open in October, they will be equipped with quarantine rooms. 

1 influenza   

n.流行性感冒，流感

参考例句：

• They took steps to prevent the spread of influenza.他们采取措施
• Influenza is an infectious disease.流感是一种传染病。

2 curb   

n.场外证券市场，场外交易；vt.制止，抑制

参考例句：

• I could not curb my anger.我按捺不住我的愤怒。
• You must curb your daughter when you are in church.你在教堂时必须管住你的女儿。

3 lesser   

adj.次要的，较小的；adv.较小地，较少地

参考例句：

• Kept some of the lesser players out.不让那些次要的球员参加联赛。
• She has also been affected,but to a lesser degree.她也受到波及，但程度较轻。

4 densely   

ad.密集地；浓厚地

参考例句：

• A grove of trees shadowed the house densely. 树丛把这幢房子遮蔽得很密实。
• We passed through miles of densely wooded country. 我们穿过好几英里茂密的林地。

5 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

6 ushered   

v.引，领，陪同( usher的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The secretary ushered me into his office. 秘书把我领进他的办公室。
• A round of parties ushered in the New Year. 一系列的晚会迎来了新年。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 valid   

adj.有确实根据的；有效的；正当的，合法的

参考例句：

• His claim to own the house is valid.他主张对此屋的所有权有效。
• Do you have valid reasons for your absence?你的缺席有正当理由吗？

8 muffled   

adj.（声音）被隔的；听不太清的；（衣服）裹严的；蒙住的v.压抑，捂住( muffle的过去式和过去分词 )；用厚厚的衣帽包着（自己）

参考例句：

• muffled voices from the next room 从隔壁房间里传来的沉闷声音
• There was a muffled explosion somewhere on their right. 在他们的右面什么地方有一声沉闷的爆炸声。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 surgical   

adj.外科的，外科医生的，手术上的

参考例句：

• He performs the surgical operations at the Red Cross Hospital.他在红十字会医院做外科手术。
• All surgical instruments must be sterilised before use.所有的外科手术器械在使用之前，必须消毒。

10 sluggishly   

adv.懒惰地；缓慢地

参考例句：

• The river is silted up and the water flows sluggishly. 河道淤塞，水流迟滞。
• Loaded with 870 gallons of gasoline and 40 gallons of oil, the ship moved sluggishly. 飞机载着八百七十加仑汽油和四十加仑机油，缓慢地前进了。 来自英汉非文学 - 百科语料821

11 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

12 mandatory   

adj.命令的；强制的；义务的；n.受托者

参考例句：

• It's mandatory to pay taxes.缴税是义务性的。
• There is no mandatory paid annual leave in the U.S.美国没有强制带薪年假。

13 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。