No flu vaccine in Minsk

Despite the flu epidemic, information about deaths from pneumonia and the increased number of swine flu cases, an immunization campaign in Minsk ended.

As Interfax news agency learnt on Thursday from Alena Fisenka, the head of the epidemiology department of the Minsk City Center of Hygiene and Epidemiology, “the vaccine purchased from the state budget is over”.

“The flu and ARVI jab campaign has ended in Minsk,” Fisenka added.

“We do not recommend Minsk dwellers to appeal t medical institutions for vaccination, because we do not have vaccine any more,” she stressed.

Fisenka said: “The vaccine won’t be purchased additionally. We can’t buy the vaccine in such a short period, it takes about a month.”

Answering to a question of how it can influence the epidemiologic situation, Fisenka said: “It is neither good nor bad that the vaccine is over. We’ve just ran short of the vaccine. If we had it, we wouldn’t be able vaccinate all people. Though we more people have got jabs this year in Minsk.”

“Ten present of the Minsk dwellers have been vaccinated in comparison with nine percent last year,” the specialist clarified.

Fisenka noted that commercial institutions would probable arrange with suppliers.

What to vaccination of schoolchildren, Fisenka said: “We did our best to vaccinate children during the holidays. Today is the last day when children can get jabs.”

As www.charter97.org has earlier reported, Belarus doesn’t have swine flu vaccine. The Ministry of Health promises to buy it in Russia, however it is unknown when it would be received by Belarus.

As of November 12, according to the Ministry of Health, 165 laboratory confirmed cases of A(H1N1) flu have been detected in Belarus.

As of November 9, the Republican Scientific and Research Center of Epidemiology and Microbiology, 128 laboratory confirmed cases of diseases caused by A(H1N1) virus.

Deputy minister of health and chief sanitary officer Valyantsina Kachan said on November 8 that 102 cases were recorded in Belarus. According to official information (as of November 4) 7 persons died from swine flu.

Thus, in accordance with official statistics, the number of patients suffering from swine flu has increased by 63 over four days.