Govt tries to cure H1N1 panic attack at fever pitch

New Delhi: Government on Friday sought to allay the fears regarding H1N1 influenza that’s sweeping across the country and announced a slew of precautionary measures to stem the spread of the disease.

In a press conference, Health Secretary Naresh Dayal also hinted that private facilities could be allowed to conduct screening tests for H1N1 provided they have the required Government accreditations.

Dayal repeatedly insisted that there was no need to panic and that the health authorities were sufficiently equipped to deal with the illness.

“We have far more deaths due to other causes and have a higher Infant Mortality rate. So, there’s no need to panic,” he said, adding, “This virus attacks people who are younger. Out of 615 cases, 129 patients are in the age group of 10 to 14 years”.

Dayal announced that the Government will initiate a media campaign from Saturday onwards and hoped it would go a long way in checking panic as well as spreading awareness.

The Government will also increase its stockpile of Tamiflu and will decentralise its distribution.

“We have enough supply of Tamiflu. The supply will now be decentralised at the district level, where we’ll now have stockpiles to treat 1,000 persons at same time. Metro cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore and Hyderabad will stock Tamiflu to treat 10,000 people at the same time. We will also up the national stockpile by 10 million,” he said.

Dayal also said more Government-run testing facilities are already in place in various cities – 16 hospitals including Safdarjung, Lady Hardinge and AIIMS in Delhi – and that some laboratories like the one in Chandigarh are under no pressure and can handle cases from other cities as well.

“Medicines will be supplied free from public health institutes. Eighteen labs have been identified and have facilities to handle all the load. Some labs haven’t received any samples like in Chandigarh. So there’s no lack of capacity to test,” he said.

But Dayal also warned against “frivolous testing”.

“The test for H1N1 is expensive – Rs 5,000 for a negative test and Rs 10,000 for a positive case. So I would urge people to refrain from frivolous testing and remember that it’s the discretion of the doctor to test or not to. Testing will be done away from isolation wards,” he said.

Dayal also said simple simple public action like abstention from work and school if symptoms appear, personal hygiene and maintaining proximity from patient will help check the spread of the virus.