DEFENSE SECURITY COOPERATION AGENCY  2800 DEFENSE PENTAGON  WASHINGTON, D.C. 20301-2800	6/25/2003

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SUBJECT :

SEVERE ACUTE RESPIRATORY SYNDROME (SARS) POLICY GUIDANCE (DSCA POLICY MEMO 03-14)

1. THE PURPOSE OF THIS MESSAGE IS TO PROVIDE POLICY GUIDANCE ON SEVERE ACUTE RESPIRATORY SYNDROME (SARS).
2. EXECUTIVE ORDER 13295: REVISED LIST OF QUARANTINABLE COMMUNICABLE DISEASES WAS SIGNED ON 14 APRIL 2003 ADDING SARS.
3. MEDICAL VETTING OF INTERNATIONAL MILITARY STUDENTS (IMS) AND THEIR AUTHORIZED FAMILY MEMBERS WILL INCLUDE SARS WHEN FROM A COUNTRY DESIGNATED BY THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION AS HAVING SARS OR WHEN THEY HAVE RECENTLY TRAVELED IN OR THROUGH A COUNTRY THAT HAS BEENDESIGNATED. IF SYMPTOMS OF SARS EXIST, TRAVEL TO THE U.S. WILL BE DELAYED IN ACCORDANCE WITH GUIDANCE FROM THE UNITED STATES CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL (CDC). CDC GUIDANCE CAN BE FOUND ATHTTP://WWW.CDC.GOV/NCIDOD/SARS/.
4. THERE IS NO DOD POLICY RESTRICTING NEWLY ARRIVING PERSONNEL FROM COUNTRIES WHERE SARS HAS BEEN REPORTED AND STUDENTS SHOULD NOT BE QUARANTINED AUTOMATICALLY BASED ON WHERE THEY HAVE BEEN. IT IS IMPORTANT, HOWEVER, TO BE VIGILANT FOR SARS AMONG ANY PERSONNEL COMING FROM AN AREA WHERE THE DISEASE IS OCCURRING. SARS IS ALMOST EXCLUSIVELY TRANSMITTED BY THOSE WHO ARE ILL. PEOPLE WHO MAY BE INCUBATING SARS BUT DO NOT HAVE SYMPTOMS ARE NOT THOUGHT TO POSE ARISK. IF THE STUDENTS HAVE NOT BEEN IN CONTACT WITH SOMEONE WHO WAS ILL WITHIN THE LAST 2 WEEKS, IT IS ALMOST A SURETY THEY ARE NOT CARRYING SARS.

5. THERE ARE SIMPLE STEPS THAT CAN BE TAKEN TO FURTHER REDUCE THE RISK TO ALL YOUR STUDENTS.

   1. INTERNATIONAL MILITARY STUDENT OFFICERS (IMSO) BRIEF STUDENTS ON SARS SYMPTOMS
   2. DETERMINE (YOU CAN DO THIS BY ASKING THE STUDENT OR, IF DESIRED, HAVING A HEALTH CARE PROVIDER ASK THE QUESTION AND EVALUATION OF THE STUDENT) IF STUDENTS ARE CURRENTLY ILL WITH A COLD OR FLU-LIKE ILLNESS. IF SO, HE/SHE SHOULD BE REFERRED FOR HEALTH EVALUATION IMMEDIATELY. THE HEALTH CARE PROVIDER SHOULD BE INFORMED IF THE STUDENT IS FROM OR HAS TRAVELED RECENTLY THROUGH A COUNTRY THAT HAS EXPERIENCED SARS.
   3. IF THE STUDENT IS NOT CURRENTLY ILL HE/SHE SHOULD BE ASKED IF, IN THE LAST 14 DAYS, THEY HAVE BEEN IN CONTACT WITH SOMEONE WHO HAD FLU-LIKE ILLNESS. IF THEY HAVE BEEN IN CLOSE CONTACT WITH SOMEONE WHO WAS ILL, THEY SHOULD BE IMMEDIATELY EVALUATED BY A HEALTH CAREP ROVIDER. RESTRICTING THEIR INTERACTION WITH OTHERS FOR TWO WEEKS MAY BE AN OPTION, DEPENDING ON THE RESULTS OF THE HEALTH CARE EVALUATION.
   4. INSTRUCT STUDENTS TO PROMPTLY SEEK MEDICAL CARE IF THEY DEVELOP A FLU-LIKE ILLNESS AND INFORM THE HEALTH CARE PROVIDER IF THEY HAVE BEEN IN A COUNTRY KNOWN TO HAVE SARS.
   5. WHEN A STUDENT IS SUSPECTED BY THE HEALTH CARE PROVIDER OF HAVING SARS, INTERNATIONAL MILITARY STUDENT OFFICERS WILL NOTIFY APPROPRIATE SECURITY ASSISTANCE AGENCY/ACTIVITY (PROVIDING AVAILABLE INFORMATION), WHO WILL IN TURN NOTIFY THE MILITARY DEPARTMENT TRAINING POLICY OFFICER.
   6. ALL PERSONNEL NEED TO FOLLOW GOOD HYGIENE PROCEDURES. ADVISE STUDENTS TO FREQUENTLY WASH THEIR HANDS AND COVER THEIR MOUTH AND NOSE WHEN COUGHING. ADVISE STUDENTS TO AVOID BEING AROUND INDIVIDUALS WITH FLU-LIKE ILLNESS.

    

6. BE INFORMED BEFORE BRIEFING STUDENTS. IN ADDITION TO THE CDC WEB SITE IN PARAGRAPH 3, THE ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF DEFENSE FOR HEALTH AFFAIRS ASD(HA) WEB SITE AT HTTP://WWW.HA.OSD.MIL/ASD/MESSAGE.CFM WILL PROVIDE IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR IMSO USE. REMEMBER, TAKING SIMPLE PRECAUTIONS WILL FURTHER REDUCE THE ALREADY LOW RISK TO STUDENTS, THEIR FAMILIES, FELLOW STUDENTS, STAFF AND FACULTY.
7. THIS MESSAGE HAS BEEN DEVELOPED IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE DIRECTOR OF MILITARY PUBLIC HEALTH, ASD (HA), AND STAFF WITH THE MILITARY DEPARTMENTS. POCS FOR THIS POLICY MESSAGE ARE BRION MIDLAND/DSCA/P3-P2 (UNCLAS) E-MAIL: BRION.MIDLAND@DSCA.MIL AND SONJA RUMSEY, INTERNATIONAL HEALTH CARE CONSULTANT, DEFENSE INSTITUTE FOR MEDICAL OPERATIONS (DIMO), (UNCLAS) E-MAIL: SRUMSEY@WORLD-NET.NET.

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