Chief Medical Officer Dr Roshan Parasram has confirmed that there have been three confirmed deaths from the HINI (Swine Flu) since the start of the flu season in October.
But he said this was in keeping with the norm, noting that seven people died from the virus last year and four earlier this year.
Speaking with Hema Ramkissoon during CNC3’s Morning Brew yesterday, Parasram said there had also been a significant decrease in the number of influenza cases compared with previous years.
Seeking to appease public fear of an outbreak, he assured: “There is no epidemic of H1N1 in the country or the region.”
He added that the World Health Organisation would state that and it has not sent out any information about such an occurrence.
He declined to disclose the areas the victims resided but they were from various parts of the country.
Reminding the population that H1N1 has been in Trinidad since 2009, Parasram also shared the statistics from the endemic channel which is a compilation of data for the previous five years.
According to the data, from 2014 to 2018, the number of influenza cases were 4,400, 4,600, 5,900, 6,500 and 7,100. “For this year so far there have only been 2077 cases. It represents a 57 per cent decrease from the endemic channel which is an average for the past five years previously.”
He said the increase in vaccines administered to the public could account for the decrease. Prior to 2016, T&T was receiving 10,000 to 12,000 vaccines a year, this has now increased to up to 100,000 vaccines.
“From a public health perspective we are creating some form of herd immunity in the populate which is protecting us and we see a drop in the number of influenza cases this year.”
He confirmed that the 100,000 vaccines arrived in the country on Monday and should be available in health centres by the end of the week. The Ministry of Health will also supply the private sector with a portion of vaccinations free of charge. Asked about complaints of price gouging, Parasram said patients shouldn’t be charged for the vaccine, but the Medical Board usually set pricing for the fraternity so he advised that any complaint about a physician charging an exorbitant price to make a report to the Medical Board or the Ministry.
While the influenzas, HINI and H3N2, have similar symptoms of the common flu, he said the symptoms are more severe.
“What we are seeing is the common cold mingled with the influenza virus, people need to understand that the common cold is very similar, fever, sore throat, body pains. The severity of influenza is usually much greater.”
He stressed that people with extreme stomach pains, nausea, unable to eat or high fever for a few days, should seek immediate medical attention. Generally, he said, high-risk persons—children between six months to five years, pregnant woman, persons over the age of 65, persons with chronic illness and respiratory illness, will be given priority for the vaccines.
“Make sure you get your vaccines as early as possible, especially the high-risk groups,” encouraged Parasram. He assured that the public health sector has the capacity, staff and resources to deal with the number of persons seeking treatment thus far. In cases where patients are warded, he said they are not placed in isolation, but they use N95 masks, gloves and barriers when dealing with those patients.
In order to guard against the spread of the disease, he encouraged persons to wash their hands properly and regularly, cover their noses and mouth when they cough or sneeze and stay away from school or work if they are sick.