Guyanese have no need to be concerned following the discovery of one case of the H1N1 flu in Cuba as that country is one that would take stringent precautions to ensure that the virus is contained, Health Minister Dr Leslie Ramsammy has said.
However, this does not mean Guyana is not continuing to take all the necessary precautions to ensure that the flu does not reach these shores; there is continued monitoring of the borders and screening of arrivals at the international airport.
Ramsammy told reporters yesterday that everyone who comes into the country is checked, but this is not as intrusive as the checks of persons arriving from Mexico.
Cuba on Monday announced that a Mexican student at a Cuban medical school was found to have the flu after returning from a trip home in late April. With a number of Guyanese students studying in Cuba and several persons returning here recently following eye operations in that country, there were some concerns about the flu reaching Guyana.
But Ramsammy said his ministry is continuing to monitor the situation and the steps being taken are as if the country is facing a pandemic. He said the ministry has an arrangement with the US Centers for Disease Control (CDC) to send any suspected samples to its lab for testing since Guyana does not have the capacity to test for the flu.
The minister had said earlier that his ministry was in daily contact with PAHO/ WHO on new developments and the movement of the virus.
He added that PAHO has been placed on a 24-hour contact system with the ministry where the issue is concerned. The Ministry of Agriculture and zoologists have also been brought on board to assist in the monitoring. Ramsammy had noted that this flu is not a new virus and pointed out that it is the specific category of H1N1 flu that has broken out.
Though it does not pose an immediate threat to Guyana, he nevertheless confirmed that all necessary measures have been put in place to arrest the problem in any event of an outbreak. The minister had also stated that the symptoms of the swine flu were like a common flu, but it may exhibit a more intense fever at times.
Ramsammy said that like the level of preparedness in dealing with the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) some years back, his ministry is equally prepared to deal with the swine flu.
WHO has said that more than 5,000 flu cases had been confirmed worldwide and so far in Mexico, said to be the epicentre of the flu, 58 persons have died.
