WHO to secure 30,000 more doses of flu vaccine
WHO said it would procure 30,000 more doses of influenza vaccine to aid the Maldivian government
A man walks into a pharmacy: most residents in the capital have begun wearing medical masks to limit chances of infection
The World Health Organization (WHO) has said that it would acquire 30,000 more doses of influenza vaccine to aid the Maldivian government.
In a statement the WHO Maldives released on Thursday, it said that these donations are aimed at smoothening the government’s efforts to fight the flu outbreak in the country.
The organization also reported the prevalence of seasonal flu in other parts of Asia, echoing other health facilities that have said that the H1N1 strain has manifested as a season flu, since the pandemic in 2009.
WHO Maldives had said that it also helped in ensuring that the Indira Gandhi Memorial Hospital’s (IGMH) laboratory for flu testing, which is the nation’s primary such laboratory, is adequately equipped and staffed.
Further, the international public health overseer said that it conducted a thousand courses to help local health workers administer Tamiflu, an anti-viral medication used to treat Influenza A viruses – which covers the H1N1 strain.
This assistance comes on top of WHO procuring masks and gowns for health workers to use when treating flu patients.
The statement also commends the preventive measures taken by the government, expressly citing its expansion of prioritized vaccine recipients and in doing so vaccinating a total of 900 expectant mothers.
“WHO and partners are bolstering efforts of the Ministry of Health which continues to make concerted efforts to prevent spread of flu and minimize its impact with 24 x 7 flu clinics and hospitals attending to people and addressing concerns of the community through an awareness campaign” the statement read.
Earlier this week, WHO had donated 10,000 doses to the government, along with 4,000 viral transport media.
READ MORE: WHO donates 10,000 doses of flu vaccine
The Health Protection Agency on Thursday revealed in its daily report of flu consultations across the nation that 176 patients have tested positive for H1N1 thus far and 23 have been admitted to hospitals.
The privately-owned ADK Hospital has also vaccinated a total of 2,864 men and women.
