HK Eye | The American doctor is in, to do a bird flu check-up
Hong Kong is paid a visit by Dr Richard Besser, ABC News’ chief health and medical editor in the US. Other stories: Spotify, iPhone 5, smog and ArtWalk
He talked to Food and Health Secretary Dr Ko Wing-man and checked out a poultry screening facility on the Hong Kong-mainland border.
A team of around 15 agricultural workers wearing white coats, rubber boots, surgical gloves and face shields descended on the truck. One worker cut off the seal that had been placed on the door to the truck at the poultry farm in Guangdong province. Then with the speed and precision of an army drill team, they went to work.
They selected 30 chickens at random from the thousand or so in the truck. Each bird had the same fate: a sample of blood was drawn; a cloacal swab was obtained; and the bird was returned to its cage. The whole operation from the time the truck pulled in to when it departed with a fresh seal took no more than 30 minutes. By law, the seal cannot be removed until at least five hours later, when the rapid testing for H7N9 is completed.
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