SIX STEPS TO KEEP SHANGHAI SAFE

Yang Jian AFTER planes from countries or regions badly hit by the coronavirus — South Korea, Japan, Iran or Italy — land at either of Shanghai’s two airports, passengers are required to remain seated for an initial health check.

This is what you need to do. It’s very easy.

Step 1: Onboard Check

Customs officials will board the aircraft to check the temperature and the information you filled out in the health form. Those with fever — 37.3 degrees Celsius or above —or other suspected coronavirus symptoms will be sent directly to a designated hospital by an ambulance.

Step 2: Epidemiological Investigation

After disembarking, every passenger must receive an epidemiological investigation. More than 300 customs experts with medical science backgrounds have been deployed.

Step 3: Health Declaration

Customs and immigration officials will check and screen the health declaration card for each passenger. Another temperature check will be conducted. Shanghai Customs has updated its health declaration card, which passengers need to complete before entering the country. The new card adds items like occupation, entry or exit port, contact in China, address in the coming two weeks, and countries and regions visited in the past two weeks. Passengers are also asked to report if two persons or more in their family or workplace have a fever or other symptoms, and whether they have taken an antipyretic or cold medicine in past three days. The declaration can be completed either in the form of a paper version or a mobile phone app.

Step 4: Label Stickers

Officials will stick a label in red, yellow or green on each traveler’s passport or ID based on the investigation and declaration information. Passengers with a green label will be allowed to leave the airport. Those with high temperature or uncertain health will receive more detailed epidemiological investigation in a designated room. Throat swabs or blood samples will be collected from suspected patients. The samples will be sent to the Shanghai International Travel Healthcare Center for testing. Suspected patients will then be handed over to the local health authority. Those testing red or yellow must go into quarantine either at home or designated hotels for 14 days.

Step 5: Transportation

Shanghai’s 16 districts, as well as neighboring Zhejiang and Jiangsu provinces, have dispatched staff to the Pudong and Hongqiao airports around the clock to transport those who need to be quarantined. For those who have arranged private cars as transportation, the name, ID card and contact of the driver and accompanying persons, car plate number and destination must be registered in advance with district officials, who will also accompany passengers to the pickup spot, verify their information and inform communities.

Step 6: Quarantine

When passengers arrive at residential complexes, staff from health service centers, neighborhood committees, police and foreign language translation volunteers will be on hand. They must sign a home quarantine commitment letter. Travelers from key affected regions and without accommodation in the city will be sent to designated hotels for quarantine. Daily necessities have been prepared in each room, while staff will deliver meals to them three times per day and check their temperatures.