CAMAGÜEY.- At 10:10 a.m. they were all in their position, flight VIV-382, coming from Mexico, was approaching the runway of the Ignacio Agramonte international airport; on board, 21 Cuban and foreign passengers. At 10:20 a.m. with the plane on the runway, the work began, consisting of three surveillance lines.

Dr. Reyna Caballero Matamoros, head of the terminal's International Sanitary Control (CSI) shift, boarded the aircraft to check if it was fumigated before landing, ask travelers for their health documentation, and make a first observation: "there we look for possible symptoms , someone who scratches his nose, for example, or sneezes, “she explained.

LINE 2: OBSERVATION IS KEY

Minutes later the passengers began to descend; on the ground, the rest of the team knows exactly where to look, and in the event of any symptoms they act promptly.

Surveillance Line 2 then begins. Here, according to Dr. María Leticia Costa García, head of the terminal's CSI section, “visual inspection is very important; in addition, the control of the Traveler's Health Declaration is carried out, which asks for a group of data to clarify if he was at risk of contracting any non-endemic disease. Those who do not bring it sit in the room to fill out the model”.

This line is supported by a powerful and modern body temperature scanner, which automatically records the temperatures of travelers, and for those who are above 37.2 degrees Celsius, an alert is issued.

Yelena Rosell Villar is the IT team, she suggests travelers use the advance information route on the website www.dviajeros.mitrans. gob.cu, a process that provides information to speed up procedures at the different points of entry.

It is mandatory for each passenger to truthfully complete the information provided to the Directorate of Identification, Immigration and Aliens, the General Customs of the Republic and the Ministry of Public Health. "The site issues a QR code, which when scanned gives all the information and makes the process more expeditious."

“The challenge is to do everything without affecting the average stay time of travelers in the terminal, for that you have to observe and not waste time, everything has to work like clockwork,” said Costa García. The Adelante team witnessed the activation of the protocol.

During the flight, a Cuban couple and their son, from Mexico, did not bring the negative PCR within 72 hours prior to the trip required by the health authorities, something that, according to CSI staff, happens quite frequently. In such cases, it is oriented that the traveler must isolate himself for eight days in a tourist facility, paying his expenses.

If someone comes with symptoms of the disease, they are isolated in a designated room, very close to the arrival hall, with oxygen, a sanitary filter equipped with waterproof suits, where they remain until they are taken to a hospital.

This line also includes the random performance of PCR, explains nurse Isel Cancino Gómez. "According to the number of travelers, a sample is selected, and if it is positive, it is extended to the rest of the flight, hence the need to provide the correct information on the address where the person will stay," she clarified.

LINE 3: SURVEILLANCE CONTINUES

After passing through Immigration and Customs controls, travelers receive a warning card that guides them in case of any symptoms, and if a suspicious case appears, they will be transferred to the medical post.

Before leaving the airport, another temperature is taken. Two positions are located in the green and red channels to be able to detect any anomaly, even leaving the institution.

But the work does not end there, the information collected at borders is tabulated and sent by email to the provinces, municipalities and health areas of destination, and although it does not always work properly, specific surveillance must be established during the 15 days after the arrival, which includes a clinical epidemiological check-up.

This point is vital in the strategy of confronting diseases, because if it is done correctly, symptoms and signs can be detected in the community to avoid transmission scenarios.

Keeping the epidemic in the country largely under control depends on the discipline and serenity with which the different protocols are applied.

In all lines, the performance of the state health inspector, Onelio Oñoz Suárez, is essential, who in the event of any violation of what is established can act, and even fine if the fact is considered a violation.

At the end of the day, when all the operations have concluded, it begins the work of Luis Montenegro Morell, operator of the incinerator, where the solid waste from international aircraft ends up.

“They are placed in sealed bags, weighed and incinerated; after burning, it is weighed again and applied a conversion factor to be sure that everything that was brought was burned”.

Doctors Leticia, Reyna, Lidia, Magalys; Mrs. Mainelis, Griselda, Iraida, Isel; computer science Yelena and Onelio, the inspector, together with Luis and many others, execute a perfect "plot" so that SARS-CoV-2 does not enter the borders.

Translated by Linet Acuña Quilez