H1N1 cases hit 1,709; 1,485 recover

MANILA, Philippines – The Department of Health (DOH) has recorded 1,709 confirmed cases of Influenza A(H1N1) in the country as of June 27, but the good news is that 1,485 of them are now free of the virus.

“The remaining 224 or 14 percent are still under treatment at present, most of them under home management,” Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said in a statement yesterday.

The DOH, according to the health chief, is anticipating more cases in the coming months, so it would “institute effective mitigation measures to save lives and prevent deaths and to reduce the impact of the pandemic on our nation and the economy.”

Although the cases are dwindling as compared to some few weeks ago, several schools were still forced to suspend classes or implement measures to prevent the virus from spreading.

Four cadets of the Philippine National Police Academy (PNPA) have tested positive for the virus, prompting school officials to implement stricter measures.

PNPA director Chief Superintendent Danilo Abarsoza said the four cadets were among the trainees in Silang, Cavite, who availed of their weekend pass last week. There are 1,030 cadets in the academy.

The latest suspension of classes was reported at the St. John’s Institute (SJI) in Bacolod City.

Bacolod City Mayor Evelio Leonardia said the school administration confirmed the suspension as a precaution after more than 100 students fell ill due to the common flu Monday.

Although the DOH regional office is not treating the situation as “case under observation,” the Corazon Locsin Montelibano Memorial Regional Hospital will be conducting random swabbing and contact tracing among parents of Grade 3 students.

SJI principal Fr. Noli Que informed Leonardia that 30 of the 60 pupils no longer have fever, as of press time yesterday.

Two schools in Tacloban City, Leyte and in Antipolo City, Rizal also suspended classes at all levels due to confirmed cases despite a government instruction to schools to avoid entire school shutdowns.

The Department of Education (DepEd) Influenza A(H1N1) Action Center said the San Benildo Integrated School suspended classes starting yesterday until July 11, while the St. Therese Child Development Center in Tacloban City suspended classes starting yesterday until July 6.

Kenneth Tirado, DepEd communications unit head, said that DepEd was still giving schools the prerogative to decide whether to have entire school shutdowns or limiting suspensions to affected sections or levels.

Dengue threat is real

DOH Central Luzon issued in its weekly update that 80 of the 83 confirmed cases have fully recovered, but what seems to be the focus of concern are the seven deaths from 654 cases of dengue in the region.

DOH regional director Dr. Rio Magpantay told The STAR that dengue is definitely more of a dangerous threat in Central Luzon than A(H1N1), noting that the mosquito-borne disease has already claimed seven lives since January.

Magpantay stressed that only three of the reported A(H1N1) cases are still ailing, while the rest have fully recovered.

Bulacan topped the list of provinces with the most cases of dengue in Central Luzon with 32, followed by Nueva Ecija with 26, Pampanga and Zambales with eight cases each, Bataan with five, and Tarlac with one case.

Magpantay lamented that dengue fever, transmitted by the Aedes Egypti mosquito, has victimized more Central Luzon folk.

Cumulative figures indicated 654 cases in the region so far this year, amid expectations of more cases with the start of the rainy season, which creates breeding places for the mosquito vectors.

Dengue has already claimed four lives in Bulacan and another three in Pampanga.

As of yesterday, Nueva Ecija topped the list of provinces with the most number dengue cases in Central Luzon at 33. A total of 202 cases were recorded in Bulacan, 135 in Pampanga, 55 in Bataan, 18 in Zambales, and five in Aurora. Reports from Tarlac were still being awaited by the DOH regional office.

Magpantay urged local officials in the region to strengthen their drive to rid their areas of breeding places for the dengue mosquitoes, which flourish in stagnant clear water.

Labor wants adequate measures

In a related development, the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) called on the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) to compel large firms nationwide to come out with “preparedness plans” in dealing with A(H1N1).

“The DOLE has to ensure that business establishments, particularly the labor-intensive ones, are taking adequate measures to monitor, prevent and control the potential proliferation of Influenza A(H1N1) among their workforces,” TUCP secretary-general and former senator Ernesto Herrera said in a statement.

The DOLE earlier issued Department Advisory No. 4, providing “Guidelines on Influenza A(H1N1) Prevention and Control at the Workplace,” for all employers and workers in the private sector.

Herrera, however, said that the guidelines were not enough and that the DOLE’s Occupational Health and Safety Center should require large employers to submit their plans to deal with the virus.

TUCP previously warned that the lingering virus, if left unchecked, could soon invade the country’s factories and impair labor productivity.

Across the seas

But the virus has not only infected domestic workers.

In fact, the number of overseas Filipino workers who have contracted A(H1N1) has been rapidly increasing the last few days.

In a report to the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), the Philippine Embassy in Kuala Lumpur said the diplomatic post received confirmation from the Malaysian government that four Filipinos tested positive for the virus.

The embassy said the Malaysian government will implement stringent checks to detect the virus in passengers arriving at Malaysian airports.

The Malaysian Ministry of Health announced that students returning to Malaysia from their travels to the United States, Britain, Australia and the Philippines are obliged to quarantine themselves for seven days, following the confirmed cases of students at the Klang Valley.

The Malaysian government announced that all visitors and Malaysians returning from abroad will be required to fill the health declaration form following the pandemic.

In Beijing, the Foreign Affairs Office of the People’s Government of Beijing Municipality reported to the Philippine Embassy that the two Filipinos quarantined in a Beijing hospital have returned to the Philippines after being cleared of the virus last June 12.

Qatar’s Supreme Health Council announced that the two Filipinos affected by the virus have fully recovered and have been released from quarantine.

The Philippine Embassy in Doha also informed the DFA that only Qatar’s Supreme Health Council is authorized to release information on A(H1N1) and that only the Qatar News Agency is authorized to announce information to the public.

The Philippine Consulate General in Shanghai reported to the DFA that the Shanghai Inspection and Quarantine Bureau had placed two Filipinos under quarantine.

The Shanghai Health Bureau reported a total of 74 flu cases, including 39 people who have recovered from the virus.

The Chinese Ministry of Health issued a document saying that in case of rampant spread of the virus in local communities, it would switch to monitoring the “group activities” instead of closely tracking and quarantining individual patients.

Mass activities in communities could be suspended or canceled. – Ding Cervantes, Mayen Jaymalin, Pia Lee-Brago, Antonieta Lopez, Rainier Allan Ronda, Cecille Suerte Felipe