All possible ‘Swine flu’ precautions being taken – Ramsammy

Minister of Health, Dr Leslie Ramsammy on Thursday assured that his ministry is taking the necessary precautions to deal with the HINI flu and he said while Trinidad has announced  one case of the flu there is no need for Guyana to do anything further.

“We are doing all that we can do, we are doing everything that is humanly possible to address this issue. Everything that can be done humanly is being done,” the minister told Stabroek News.

In Thursday’s edition of the Trinidad Express it was reported that a woman tested positive for the H1N1 or ‘swine flu’ virus in that country.
The report said that country’s health ministry had stated that the woman is a national with a “very strong recent travel history to several countries having been affected by the virus.”

“Because this might be the index case (first case) for Trinidad and Tobago, the Ministry of Health is repeating the test so that the results may be confirmed,” the news report quoted from a health ministry statement.

“After developing flu-like symptoms, the patient was screened for Influenza A; the results of that first screening test came back negative. The specific diagnostic for H1N1 was then administered and the results came back positive for this specific sub-type,” the Trinidad health ministry statement further said.

Following the outbreak of the flu in Mexico, which has seen a number of deaths, a number of other countries have reported the presence of the flu. Closer to Guyana, Brazil and Cuba have reported cases while just last week Jamaica announced the diagnosing of a case in that country.

Since the outbreak Guyana’s health ministry has taken a number of steps as precautionary measures and it had announced that in the event that there is an outbreak of the flu in Guyana the West Demerara Regional Hospital will be used for surge capacity and to quarantine infected patients.

Routine activities at the airport are continuing as they relate to port health and while travel has not been restricted the ministry had warned that more intrusive plans were on the cards to protect the nation’s borders if necessary. Airlines have since been written to by the ministry to remind them of their obligations under the International Health Regulations as it relates to the Aircraft Health Declaration and to inform them that this will be enforced.

A committee comprising representatives from a number of non-governmental organisations, line ministries and international and donor agencies, including PAHO, UNICEF, UNFPA, CDC and USAID, has since been established to monitor the situation.

Daily Syndromic Surveillance Reporting with a special focus on influenza type illnesses was commenced at all hospitals and responders who were trained during the Avian Flu situation have been activated and are ready to take action should the need arise.

The ministry had also assured that 20,000 doses were available to treat the flu should the need arise.
‘Swine influenza’ viruses are not transmitted by food so a person cannot get ‘swine influenza’ from eating pork or pork products. Eating properly handled and cooked pork and pork products are safe. Cooking pork to an internal temperature of 160°F kills bacteria and viruses that may be preset.

Symptoms of ‘swine flu’ in people are similar to those of regular or seasonal flu and include fever, lethargy, lack of appetite and coughing. Some with ‘swine flu’ also have reported runny nose, sore throat, nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea.

Precautions
The ministry had advised persons to:
•  Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when coughing or sneezing. Discard used tissue safely in a covered bin.
•  Wash your hands often with soap and water, especially after you cough or sneeze. Alcohol-based hand cleaners are also effective.
•  Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth. Germs spread that way.

•  Try to avoid close contact with sick people. Direct all persons who are sick to seek medical attention.
•  If you get sick, please seek medical attention immediately at the nearest health facility. Public and private hospitals around Guyana are open 24 hours, seven days per week and health centres operate during working hours on weekdays.

Persons are also advised to limit the frequency of visits to patients in hospitals and the ministry said that only where it is absolutely necessary should persons make such hospital visits.

Children should not be taken to the hospitals during such visits.
Meanwhile, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has reported confirmed cases of ‘swine flu’ in 66 countries with 19,273 cases of influenza A (H1N1) infection, including 117 deaths.