Echorouk Forum: Experts warn against swine flu spread

Experts gave a set of recommendations on prevention against the H1N1 virus in a forum held at Echorouk’s headoffice on Tuesday.

• Head of medical surveillance at the airport of Algiers doctor Louisa Zeouaoui said the virus is as dangerous as any virus of ordinary influenza. “We have to respect simple and daily hygiene to protect ourselves from the infection.”
• She asked Algerians returning home to go the closest hospital if they suffer from cold.
• Permanent member at the crisis cell of the health ministry doctor Kamel Ait Oubli said the best preventive way is the awareness of people.
• Coordinator between the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the health ministry doctor Samia Amrani said H1N1 virus is less dangerous than H5N1 virus but it is more spreading.
• “Algeria will buy the vaccine once it is discovered. The first quantities will be for medical staff, airport workers and pilgrims,” she added.
• “Algeria has taken all the necessary measures to prevent against people since April. The decision to prevent people from performing pilgrimage is taken in coordination with the WHO, Saudi Arabia and Muslim governments.”
• Technical staff consults 40 flights
• Medical staff at the airport of Algiers consults 40 flights per day to detect any potential swine case.
• An efficient system was set up at the airport. It is based on three aspects: symptoms detection, information system and surveillance.
• Consultations with laboratories to buy vaccine
• The government allocated more than 8 billion DZ to protect the Algerian people from the swine flu as a preliminary step. The sum can be increased if the pandemic spreads in the country.
• Algeria bought 16 million surgical masks and one million protective glasses. They are supposed to be distributed once the pandemic appears.
• The government started its serious consultations with medicines laboratories to order considerable quantities of the vaccine once it is discovered.
• Suspicious swine flu case in eastern Algeria
• A hospital in the province of Constantine (east of Algiers) received an urgent call from the airport of the area about a suspicious infection case of a passenger coming from Sweden passing by Germany, according to a supervisor at the airport.
• The first case of the infection was discovered on the same plane. The infected woman is in Algiers.
• Health director of Algiers Lekhel Rabia said the woman and her daughter with H1N1 virus will leave the hospital on Wednesday or Thursday. “Both of them are recovering and they do not represent any danger on the public health.”
• He said Algeria is not among the countries where the virus is transmitted between people. “The two cases came from America passing by Germany. All of their relatives and neighbours were tested.”
• Kiosks in beaches to raise awareness
• Doctor Amrani said the health and interior ministries set up kiosks in the Algerian beaches. Doctors will raise awareness among holiday makers about the danger of the H1N1 virus.
• “Seminars will be held in favour of doctors, journalists and fire fighters in July in this regard,” she added.
• Medicines stock enough to face pandemic
• Doctor Amrani excluded the possibility of importing the medicine against H1N1 virus as “Algeria has more than 6 million doses of the antiviral drug Tamiflu. They bought them when the bird flu spread. This drug is currently used to treat the swine flu.”