February 1st, 2010 by MWilhelm

(AP) — LEXINGTON, Ky. – Doctors applied the paddles to Maddy Kidwell’s little body over and over and over and over.

Four times in 10 minutes.

Four times before her heart began to beat again.

Her parents, Harold and Edith Kidwell, knew something had gone badly wrong because the nurses wouldn’t even let them near the room she was in.

It was just another unreal moment in a string of unreal moments that had led them from watching their almost 3-year-old daughter play happily on the floor to waiting while she fought for her life.

The H1N1 flu virus that hit Maddy so hard “wasn’t even really on my radar,” her mom said. She’d told her kids to keep their hands washed and had bought some hand sanitizer. But she didn’t get them vaccinated. It didn’t seem necessary, she said.

“You never realize how easy it could happen to you.”

Maddy’s case is extreme, but 229 children have died from H1N1 since August, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. State health officials reported that four of the 39 people in Kentucky who died of H1N1 have been children.

The number of cases overall has waned in recent weeks, but CDC officials expect another surge as the nation enters what is typically flu season.

Dr. Philip Bernard, who treated Maddy at Kentucky Children’s Hospital, said H1N1 is “a completely preventable disease because there is vaccine available.”

February 1st, 2010 by MWilhelm

As the crisis response is scaled down, and vaccines go unused, a number of people are asking what happened to the swine flu pandemic.

Last week the Council of Europe launched an inquiry into the handling of swine flu.

Some claim that it was never really a pandemic at all and that the World Heath Organization may have been overly influenced by the pharmaceutical industry.

The BBC’s Imogen Foulkes reports.

February 1st, 2010 by MWilhelm

(MYFOX NATIONAL) – The widely publicized swine flu pandemic of the past few years may have been largely over-hyped, according to recent reports.

While the swine flu scare may have cost panicked citizens lots of time, money and quality of life, the anxiety made some people very wealthy. For many who believed the hype, stockpiles of unused pharmaceuticals now translate to a big waste of money — particularly undesirable in this down economy.

“The panic leading up to the anticipated pandemic was a multibillion-dollar windfall for big drug companies like GlaxoSmithKline Plc, Novartis AG, and Sanofi-Aventis SA,”Portfolio.com reports. “But some countries are now negotiating with the companies to cancel part of their orders.”

A Jan. 26 article from Time magazine speculates on the issue and asks not only who raised the alarm, but why.

“By the summer of 2009, shortly after the H1N1 flu pandemic had first emerged, there was a waiting list for the first several million doses of the forthcoming new flu vaccine. At the head of the line, naturally, were the world’s richest nations,” reads the Time article.

The Time article notes that admonitions against rich nations’ greed from World Health Organization head Margaret Chan may have prompted a ramp up of production and buying.

A Wall Street Journal article from April 2009 noted that an H1N1 scare not only causes people to stay home from work out of fear, but also damages tourism, while strengthening healthcare and drug company stock portfolios.

“Flu concerns were helping pharmaceutical and health-care stocks,” the WSJ article said.

February 1st, 2010 by MWilhelm

Reviewing the swine flu response will help in future emergencies

Hawaii has been lucky so far to get through the H1N1 pandemic with one wave of “mild to moderate severity,” but flu is unpredictable, cautions Dr. Sarah Park, the state epidemiologist.

“We’re certainly not saying we’re over it yet,” she said in an interview. “Hawaii has not, and hopefully will not, see a second wave, but recent deaths highlight that vaccinations can do something for you, even with a low level of disease.”

Park, chief of the state Health Department’s Disease Outbreak Control Division, urges residents who have not been vaccinated for H1N1 or swine flu to take that step to protect themselves and those around them.

Although flu activity has waned on the mainland, the pandemic is worldwide, with a lot of activity in some areas with travel potential to and from Hawaii, she said. The first cases here were travelers, she pointed out.

Thirteen deaths associated with H1N1 — most with underlying medical conditions — have been reported in Hawaii since the first three cases of the virus were confirmed here May 5. The latest two deaths were in December and the week of Jan. 10.

Bill Gallo, with U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, says he is concerned about a potential new wave hitting the state with “a lot of vaccine unused.”

“I think maybe a lot of people struggled to get vaccinated early on when the supply was limited and gave up,” he said in an interview. “While we’re having a lull in flu activity, we all know there could still be a wave in store.”

Because of the delay by manufacturers in getting vaccine out, said Gallo, Hawaii and other states “dealt with a lot of challenges just trying to manage the flow and everything. We’re hoping next time it will go quicker. The best solution is improving vaccine technology.”

Gallo, the CDC’s senior management official for Hawaii and the U.S.-affiliated Pacific islands, said “there is a lot to be learned” from the pandemic, “and hopefully all states and counterparts” will share stories and learn from each other. For example, he said, Hawaii can teach other states about school-based flu vaccination clinics.

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February 1st, 2010 by MWilhelm

A north Shropshire woman who works for the NHS and had the swine flu vaccination has been left unable to walk properly after the jab triggered a rare medical condition.

But married mother-of-two Alison Dygnas today urged others not to be put off having the jab themselves after she developed myasthenia gravis – a neurological condition which has left her with limited mobility and unable to lead the active life she led before.

In the space of three months she has been forced to give up work, an active lifestyle and many of the things she loved doing.

She said: “It’s entirely a personal choice and I wouldn’t want people to die because they never got the jab.

“It’s a rare side effect of the jab and there’s a one in a million chance of this happening.”

Mrs Dygnas was urged to have the jab because she works in the NHS.

February 1st, 2010 by MWilhelm

Not for the first time, the World Health Organization is under fire for its handling of the current H1N1 influenza pandemic. Initially, it was criticized for being too slow to alert the world when the disease, often called swine flu, first broke out in Mexico. Now, the organization faces a diametrically opposite charge: that it was influenced by the pharmaceutical industry to create a false pandemic when none existed, so that drug companies could sell more vaccines. The W.H.O.’s critics are barking up the wrong tree. This is a real influenza pandemic, not an imaginary disease cooked up by public health agencies around the world and the pharmaceutical industry. Though for the vast majority of people the disease has been mild, it has killed small children, pregnant mothers and otherwise healthy teenagers. This is not an innocuous disease. Take a look at the lungs of those whom it as killed: The virus has turned them into a wasteland of devastated tissue, in a way that the normal flu virus never can.

The world has been fortunate that this virus has not mutated to cause more severe illness in larger numbers of people. This could still happen. In China, in less than a month’s time, one of the world’s great annual movements of people will take place as millions travel to their home towns and villages during the Chinese lunar new year holidays. Travel and the movement of people provides opportunities for the virus to spread to new environments and change to a more lethal form in the process. The changing flu seasons that see the focus of outbreaks move from the northern to the southern hemisphere, and then back again to the northern hemisphere later in the year, also bring risks of the virus changing to a more severe form.

The non-debate over whether there is a new type of flu sweeping the world has detracted from a real issue: The world’s poorest countries have yet to receive the vaccine they were promised, while many of the world’s rich countries are wondering what to do with vaccine supplies their citizens do not want. Ninety percent of the world’s influenza vaccine production is concentrated in Europe and North America. With production well short of demand, governments in these countries had contracts in place to buy the bulk of the first year’s production. Most poor and middle income countries (with the exception of countries like China, which has built up its vaccine production capacity) would have had to wait for at least a year for their first supplies.

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February 1st, 2010 by MWilhelm

According to a recent statement by Dr. Justin Wane, an official in the Ministry of Health, all the cases of the infectious influenza A, H1N1 virus– or swine flu – have recovered; and, as of now, there are no more cases of the disease in the country.

Nonetheless, the situation is being constantly and closely monitored by theMinistry of Health, via TRAC Plus, the National Reference Laboratory and other organs.

Noting that Rwanda has been relentlessly battling with the H1N1 virus for the past four months, Wane – the head of the Swine Flu response team – said that even the Kigali Central Prison’s most recent confirmed swine flu cases recovered completely last week.

Saying that thus far nearly 400 “severe but rather very mild” cases of swine flu have been treated and fully recovered in Rwanda, Wane added: “Since last week, we have not received any reports about emerging cases and certainly the situation is under control now.”

Giving the Rwandans credit for the “truly commendable” turnaround in the swineflu situation, Wane added: “We mainly attribute the success of this fight to increased hygiene among all Rwandans. It is also important to note that those who contracted the flu made it a point not to infect others. Behavioral change also contributed a great deal to this achievement and we hope that the situation will remain as it is.”

February 1st, 2010 by MWilhelm

According to a Yuma Country news release, residents can still receive flu shots for both the H1N1 virus or swine flu as it is also known, and for seasonal flu, as well.

Vaccines will be offered by workers from the Yuma County Public Health District from 8:00 a. m. to Noon and 1:00 p. m. to 4:30 p. m. Monday through Thursday for the month of February. For receiving the vaccines you will have to visit Room 256, the Nursing Division, at 2200 W. 28th St. in Yuma.

According to the release, the H1N1 vaccine is being provided at no cost, though the seasonal flu shots come at a cost of $25 for adults and $10 for children, with cash, Medicare and AHCCCS (Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System) accepted.

Clinics will be open to people of all ages having a physical address in Yuma County, with shots given on a first come, first serve basis.

As per the county news release, so far, area physicians, Fry’s, Mollen clinics, Walgreens and Healthwaves have received the distributed vaccines, and will continue to receive them for the rest of the flu season.

Call the 2009-2010 Flu Season phone line with recorded information at (928) 373-1025 for more information on both kinds of flu vaccines.

And while, pharmacies across the stateline continue to offer vaccinations, a free flu clinic is being set up in Ogle County tomorrow, from 9:00 a. m. to Noon at the Oregon Health Department. It is completely free.

January 25th, 2010 by MWilhelm

Dispute is over $106 million alleged ‘personal services’ contract

The Health and Human Services Department’s inspector general has accused the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention of violating federal contracting rules  in CDC’s administration of a $106 million professional services contract, according to a new report.

The case involves a CDC contract that HHS IG Daniel Levinson alleges was a personal services pact prohibited by the Federal Acquisition Regulation. CDC officials are disputing the allegation and defending their handling of the contract.

Under the federal rule, “personal services” are defined as those in which an employer-employee relationship is created between the government and contractor personnel. Factors to be considered include whether the contract worker is subject to relatively continuous supervision by agency personnel, whether the contractor performs the work on site, whether the government furnishes the equipment and tools, whether the work carries out the agency’s mission, and whether the need for the service can be expected to last beyond one year.

Under federal rules, agencies that hire contractors for personal services are circumventing federal civil service hiring. Such contracts are prohibited except in special cases.

Levinson audited a 2003 CDC contract for management and consulting services awarded to an unidentified minority- and woman-owned professional services certified small business contractor. The contractor subsequently received 149 task orders totaling $106 million from 2003 to 2008.

The IG’s audit covered eight task orders valued at $18.9 million, which required an estimated 110 contractor personnel.

Levinson concluded that CDC inappropriately administered all eight task orders as personal service contracts. “By using contractor personnel for personal services, CDC violated the Federal Acquisition Regulation,” Levinson wrote. The Jan. 11 IG report recommends that CDC further evaluate its contracts for compliance and institute additional policies and procedures.

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January 25th, 2010 by MWilhelm

With the National Institute of Virology (NIV) admitting that the H1N1 viral transmission has not yet stopped, imported H1N1 vaccine will soon be administered to the high-risk groups of doctors and paramedics dealing with swine flu patients.

In Pune district, where over 10 lakh people have been screened for H1N1 symptoms, information is being collected from 24 hospitals about the requirement of the imported vaccine. NIV director Dr A C Mishra said transmission of H1N1 virus was still on and that it will take time to settle. When contacted in New Delhi, Dr V M Katoch, director general, Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), told The Indian Express that an order of 12-15 lakh doses of the vaccine was placed with Sanofi Pasteur Pharmaceuticals. The safety trials will end soon and the imported vaccine will be administered to healthcare workers by mid-February, Katoch said.

January 25th, 2010 by MWilhelm

IMPHAL, Jan 25: The saying goes that only the wearer knows just where the shoe pinches. H1NI till today meant only alarming news headlines and what one read about or heard in the news. Except that I was in the nation of smiles: Thailand, to rapportuer a 3 day Consultation on Harm reduction, drug use and poverty and came back with a raging fever that sent alarm bells ringing within the family, as well as my own self. The trouble started at Bangkok airport: acute shivering and weakness of the limbs coupled with a numbness. Some other colleagues who were getting back with me from the meeting gave me Combiflam and I slept over the worst..or so I thought. Reaching Kolkatta for a night halt, the medication made it impossible for the flu indicator installed at the health check up area of the International airport area. Getting back to Imphal, I was only aware of the repercussions of a possible infection but did not have too much confidence in the 3 people I saw sitting at the health counter at Imphal airport. I got my medications from my Uncle, a doctor who asked me stay away from other family members and to go for a swine flu test..just to be on the safe side.

That’s where the story lies. I went alone and stood in a cramped line to get an OPD ticket. If indeed it turns out that I am positive for H1N1, then I must have infected many others. It took me about an hour to get my OPD, following which I went to the Microbiology Department at JN Hospital. The technician obviously was taking their Government job timings seriously and not there till noon time. I twiddled my thumbs and called up some people who I thought I should inform, in case I was going to be down with swine flu. I even did a mental check up of how some of the people whom I could not inform would hear about what I was going through. I was eventually led to the special ward where a door with a computer print out read “Influenza ward” was opened after much ceremony of finding out where the keys were. The welcome committee was a horde of mosquitoes and a pool of stagnant water in the room where in case of a need for isolation, I was supposed to stay. After another hour during which, doctors and nurses and admin people went in a tizz trying to figure out what procedure to follow etc, there was some semblance of work and someone wearing robot like clothes came in to take my throat swap. More robot type people came in later at irregular intervals: one took my fever history, another examined me and I could vaguely sense some amount of panic for no one came in to tell me what I was supposed to do.

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January 25th, 2010 by MWilhelm

RIVERSIDE, Calif. (CBS) -

Students at more than 50 schools in Riverside County will be able to get free swine flu vaccinations this month, Riverside County public health officials said Monday.

Clinics will be held in several school districts in Perris, Riverside, Banning, Menifee, Moreno Valley, Corona, Temecula and Jurupa, according to Sean Nealon, a spokesman for the Riverside County Department of Public Health.

Children will also be vaccinated at private schools in Riverside, Palm Desert, Indio, San Jacinto and Murrieta, Nealon said. A complete list of schools is available at the Riverside County Department of Public Health’sWeb site.

“This is a wonderful opportunity for parents to ensure their children are vaccinated,” Eric Frykman, a Riverside County public health officer, said.

Since November, the county’s public health teams have visited more than 30 schools and nearly 50 child care facilities.

Some 2,559 confirmed and probable cases of the H1N1 virus have been reported in Riverside County since April, and 33 people have died from complications, according to county health officials.

The vaccine will still be available at 10 county family care centers for free on a walk-in basis from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. The centers are located in Banning, Corona, Hemet, Indio, Jurupa, Lake Elsinore, Palm Springs, Perris, Riverside and Rubidoux.

January 25th, 2010 by MWilhelm

Douglas County Emergency Management is partnering with Carson City Health and Human Services to offer free H1N1 vaccinations at East Fork Fire Station 7 in the Gardnerville Ranchos from 9 a.m.-noon on Feb. 6.

Station 7 is at 940 Mitch Drive.

Flu season lasts until May and with ample vaccine supplies, now is an excellent time to get vaccinated, said Dr. Thomas Frieden, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

“I hope that all who are interested in being vaccinated will be vaccinated. It’s the best way to protect yourself and your family from illness, serious illness, hospitalization or death,” he said.

The Saturday clinic is open to all. H1N1 vaccinations are also available at the Douglas County Community Health Nursing Clinic, 1133 Spruce St., Gardnerville.

Their vaccination hours are 8 a.m.-4 p.m. Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays, closed for lunch. Information call 782-9038.

Carson City Health and Human Services, 900 E. Long St., Carson City, offers H1N1 vaccinations on Thursdays only from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., closed 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. for lunch. Information, call 887-2190.

January 25th, 2010 by MWilhelm

INLAND EMPIRE – Riverside County health officials are launching an offensive against the Swine flu over the next six weeks.

Free vaccinations are being offered for children in more than fifty schools. Health care workers have already visited about thirty schools and fifty child care facilities.

Upcoming clinics will be held in the following school districts: Perris Elementary, Riverside, Banning, Menifee, Moreno Valley, Perris Union High School, Corona-Norco, Alvord, Temecula Valley and Jurupa.

Children are also getting the vaccine at private schools in Riverside, San Jacinto, Murrieta, Palm Desert and Indio and at family care centers.

As of earlier this month, the Inland Empire was the only area of California with ‘localized’ outbreaks of Swine flu. (INT)

January 25th, 2010 by MWilhelm

By Mary Ann Roser | Monday, January 25, 2010, 11:01 AM

Right after I wrote about a nurse who was fired from Seton Medical Center for refusing flu shots and then declining to a wear mask all day, several medical professionals chided me for failing to report that masks do not prevent the spread of flu.

There is controversy about whether surgical masks reduce the spread of flu, and research on the topic is limited. A new study sheds some light on the use of wearing masks for reducing flu spread in community settings, but it didn’t test masks in a hospital setting.

A little background:

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said during the H1N1 swine flu pandemic last year recommended that health care professionals wear respirators. It also said that while masks did not filter out particles as tiny as viruses, they were better than nothing in places that might be short of respirators.

Specifically, the guidance said the masks “are a barrier to splashes, droplet sprays, and autoinoculation of influenza virus from the hands to the nose and mouth. Thus, they should be chosen over no protection.”

The new study of 1,437 young people living in university residence halls during the 2006-2007 flu season found the highest reductions in flu illness during the four to six weeks that students wore face masks and washed their hands, in comparison to two other groups: those who only wore masks and a control group. Specifically, researchers found a 35 percent to 51 percent reduction when compared with the control group.

The research published in The Journal of Infectious Diseases by scientists at the University of Michigan School of Public Health said they believed their work would be helpful during a pandemic, especially when vaccine is limited.