Re. “a guy bleeding from his leg sitting in a wheelchair” If the guy was literally bleeding from an open wound, from an infection control perspective, this is commonly and technically known as “bad” – especially if someone is boarding a crowded plane for a well-contained flight. First of all, if the guy bleeding has an open wound, he himself is way open to bacteria and significant risk of infection, particularly in a crowded, closely contained, not very clean, commercial airplane environment. Secondly, if this is an open wound, those who might come into contact with the guy, or his blood from a surface, are at risk of contracting anything he may be carrying. This could be any type of blood-borne illnesses like hepatitis B or C, staph, or any other virus the person may have. Blood is a fabulous transmitter for illness. Additionally, bloodborne viruses can live outside the body and still cause infection. For example, the Hep B virus can live for as long as a week outside the body in dried blood, and Hep C for up to four days. One might also think there is a decent chance that a guy boarding a plane with a bleeding open wound is not in the best of health or under the best of care. To allow a passenger to have an uncovered, bleeding wound, while boarding and flying on a plane is staggering to me. And people usually look at me funny after I sit down, pull out my Lysol wipes, and clean every surface around me that I might touch. Southwest – Apparently you have a new protocol to implement, and/or further training to provide your employees.
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