Canada steps up Ebola screening at borders

Canada will enact additional measures to screen travellers from Ebola-affected regions for signs of the illness, including targeted temperature screening at Canadian borders.

The additional measure was announced Wednesday by Minister of Health Rona Ambrose, after a Liberian man died from the disease earlier this week in a Dallas, Texas hospital. According to the World Health Organization, of the approximately 8,000 people that have been infected in the outbreak, around 3,900 have died.

According to a statement from the Public Health Agency of Canada, international border crossings to Canada are monitored 24/7, and travellers from affected West African countries are identified and asked about their health. There are no direct flights into Canada from the affected countries in Africa and the government maintains that the risk to Canadians remains ‘very low.’

Under the Quarantine Act, Canadians and travellers to Canada must notify a Canada Border Services Agency Officer if they think they might be sick with a contagious illness or been in close contact with someone else who does.

If these travellers are ill or identify as having been in contact with an ill person, they will be referred to a Public Health Agency of Canada Quarantine Officer. Quarantine Officers have the necessary training and equipment, including temperature monitoring devices, to conduct a health assessment and determine whether additional health measures are required.

Should these travellers identify themselves in this manner, a temperature check will now be administered.

This new measure complements additional measures already put in place by the Public Health Agency of Canada, including increasing its public health presence at Canadian airports to assist in screening of travellers from Ebola-affected regions and delivering public health education to international travellers.