Death toll from A(H1N1) flu doubles in one month - DOH

MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Health (DOH) yesterday said the death toll from Influenza A(H1N1) doubled in a month’s time, from 13 in July to 28 in August.

According to data from the DOH’s Health Emergency Management Services (HEMS), the fatalities were among the 4,548 total cases of A(H1N1) recorded in various parts of the country. Of the figure, 4,369 have recovered from the infection.

The Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) expressed concern over the rising deaths.

TUCP secretary-general and former senator Ernesto Herrera cited a report from the Sweden-based European Center for Disease Control (ECDC) dated Sept. 3 that indicated “20 new fatal cases” in the Philippines.

But Herrera stressed the ECDC’s figures on its daily updates was “based on official information provided by national public health websites, or through other official communication channels.”

The ECDC’s latest daily update listed a total of 262 confirmed A(H1N1) deaths in Southeast Asia; Thailand, 130; Malaysia, 73; the Philippines, 28; Singapore, 17; Indonesia, 10; Vietnam, two; and Brunei and Laos, one each.

Worldwide, A (H1N1) has already claimed a total of 3,315 lives, the ECDC said

Herrera called on the DOH to return to its weekly disclosure of confirmed A(H1N1) cases “to keep the public in an elevated state of readiness” in dealing with the spread of the virus.

The DOH recently stopped testing and reporting of individual cases of A(H1N1), after the World Health Organization (WHO) stopped compelling countries to do so.

Last Friday, Malacañang ordered the DOH to establish extra laboratories in public hospitals “to effectively manage” A(H1N1) cases.

It also instructed the DOH to heighten monitoring of A(H1N1) and improve coordination with the WHO for real time exchange of information on the virus.

The WHO has also warned govern-ments worldwide of an imminent surge in A(H1N1) cases, saying countries could see more deaths as cases double every three to four days for several months.

WHO listed over 254,206 confirmed cases of A(H1N1) and “at least 2,837 deaths” worldwide as of Aug. 30.