Algeria receives more than 700 thousand doses of swine flu vaccine

The Ministry of Health, Population and Hospital Reform annouces Wesdnesday in Algiers that it received 731 thousand doses of AH1N1 flu vaccine. 

• Spokesman professor Samia Amrani, in charge of the swine flu file at the ministry said in press conference that the vaccination campaign will be launched after the analysis and control of the received quantities of the swine flu vaccine by Pasteur Institute and the National Laboratory for Controlling Pharmaceutical products and the National Center for Toxicology, and obtaining a certificate of compliance by these health institutions.
• Ms. Amrani speaks about a six phases program, stressing that the workers of the public, semi-public and private health sector are in the forefront of the beneficiaries from this vaccine followed by pregnant women, staff of the strategic and important services, patients with chronic deseases,  and then children and adolescents from six months to 24 years, then finally less six months babies.
• « The Ministry of Health provided more than 8000 centers of vaccination in Algeria, where a doctor and several agents control the situation, as well as the administrative agents. Medical chack-ups for  each person is needed before the vaccination, as he/she has to be placed under medical observation for 30 minutes, in anticipation to the emergence of symptoms of allergy », she adds.
• Head of the Protection at the Ministry of Health, professor Ismail Masbah said ; « The Ministry of Health just like the World Health Organization recommends the vaccine, which is for free. It contains some symptoms such as any other vital types of vaccines, like allergic symptoms that may appear in some persons, and it is a normal thing ».
• In fact, a lot of Algerian citizens ignore the simplest information on the merits of the swine flu, thing which needs intensification of the awareness campaigns and sensitization in the different TV channels and newspapers.  
• Algeria will recevie, until the end of December, 300 thousand doses out of 20 million which will be received until May 2010, that are directed primarily for health workers, customs officials and airports and ports, then to the security agents and pregnant women, and then infants, pupils and all the Algerian citizens under 24.
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• The number of swine flu cases in Algeria reaches Tuesday 476 cases, of which 24 deaths, as this pandemic is spread over 208 regions of the world, killing 9596 persons.