Amid swine flu scare in neighbouring Nepal and India, the health ministry says travel to and from these two countries is not restricted as of now. The ministry also assured that adequate surveillance and management system is in place to tackle any potential outbreak.
“If it were an event of public health concern, the WHO would certainly inform us,” said Dr. Karma Lhazin, the Director of the Department of Public Health of the Ministry of Health.
“But swine flu is considered seasonal flu since 2009 and 2010 in Bhutan as well. And since WHO has not notified the countries that it is of public health concern, there is no restriction to travel and trade in these areas.”
However, Dr. Karma says it is important that people take precaution by maintaining personal hygiene against the contagious disease. Though the infection is now a seasonal flu, she says, children, elderly, pregnant women and those with medical conditions or weak immune systems are more at risk.
She added that Bhutan records such infections every year, with two cases reported so far this year. But the country’s surveillance and management system is able to contain it in a few days.
“We have trained all the 20 district health workers in managing such outbreaks and they know what to do in terms of all these things,” said Dr. Karma Lhazin.
“We have a good notifiable disease system in the surveillance system, which can capture all these outbreaks of flu and cough & cold, which gets notified on an immediate basis.”
She added that since the infections have been usually occurring in schools, teachers have also been trained in identifying the disease and its remedies. In Bhutan, the infection, going by the records, is common during spring and summer seasons.
