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I'd hope that with our advance warning we would be able to isolate and contain. But I see today two stories of youngsters having been to Toronto, and now possibly having SARS. The NJ case is only a suspect one, but the Florida case is a probable.

I agree isolation is the best hope for containment. What is discouraging is the delay in the immune response and the number of likely false negatives in the testing. When you can diagnose ONLY by symptoms, then the lines are blurred as to who needs isolation and who doesn't, who is contagious and who isn't.

Patients and families have very little tolerance for isolation precautions, and this is a free country. What happens when a patient with SARS says "You can't keep me prisoner like this--I'm testing negative--I'm out of here--I'm going to a hospital that will let my wife (child, nurse with no jupiter suit) in here. You people aren't compassionate and caring. What ever happened to nursing ideals? You don't have respect for your patients."

Trust me on this, it's going to happen. And it will spread the disease.