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Seha launches Hajj Vaccination Campaign against H1N1

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  • Seha launches Hajj Vaccination Campaign against H1N1

    Seha launches Hajj Vaccination Campaign against H1N1
    The Abu Dhabi Health Services Company's (Seha) announced the launch of its Hajj Vaccination Campaign in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi starting November 17th 2009. It will be offered at 11 healthcare centers amongst the Ambulatory Healthcare Services (AHS) and Sheikh Khalifa Medical City (SKMC) facilities.

    This move is to create ease in the procedures for the Hajj pilgrims and also to ensure their good health right from starting the journey from the <ACRONYM title="United Arab Emirates">UAE</ACRONYM> to coming back.

    H1N1 vaccination has been initiated in 8 AHS centers and 3 SKMC family medicine centers. In Abu Dhabi, these are as follows: DPSC Abu Dhabi, Bain Al Jesraen, Khalifa (A) and Al Samha healthcare centers, and Al Mushrif, Al Baten and Al Khaleej family medicine centers. In Al Ain: DPSC Al Ain, Al Muwaiji, Al Mezyed and Al Maqam healthcare centers.

    Mr. Clyde Eder, Operation Director, Seha, said:
    "This decision has been taken in order to increase the reach of the H1N1 vaccination campaign for Hajj and thereby increase the convenience of local as well as expatriate pilgrims on their holy journey to perform the Hajj this year."
    Mr Clyde also invited all the pilgrims to visit these facilities to take both the compulsory vaccinations, which are offered free of cost.

    Dr. Tej Maini, CEO, SKMC, said, "Two vaccinations would be given to the Hajj pilgrims - one is H1N1 and the second Meningitis. All Hajj pilgrims are required to take these compulsorily at one time. It is preferable to take them both two weeks prior to travelling for Hajj so that they provide maximum strength and immunity for the body."

    Elaborating on the campaign, Dr. Abdel Haddi Al Ahbabi, COO of AHS, Seha, said, "H1N1 vaccinations for our Hajj pilgrims will start from today until the conclusion of the Hajj period for this year and will be offered during the working hours of the respective authorized centers for H1N1 vaccine."

    He further added, "These vaccinations are free of cost for all Hajj pilgrims going to the Holy Land. As a note of precaution to all, if any flu-like symptoms appear, they should visit the healthcare facility consultant here or the Hajj medical representative in the Holy Land."

    He concluded by informing that, "Hajj pilgrims should provide the documents evidencing their upcoming visit for Hajj and a certificate will be issued to them for all the vaccinations taken for this season's Hajj."


    "Safety and security don't just happen, they are the result of collective consensus and public investment. We owe our children, the most vulnerable citizens in our society, a life free of violence and fear."
    -Nelson Mandela

  • #2
    Re: Seha launches Hajj Vaccination Campaign against H1N1

    Call for Pregnant Women to take H1N1 Vaccine
    Staff Reporter

    6 January 2010,

    ABU DHABI — Health Authority-Abu Dhabi (HAAD) on Tuesday called all pregnant women in the Abu Dhabi emirate to take the vaccine in order to avoid catching the swine flu virus and protect their babies.

    “In line with the H1N1 national vaccination strategy and according to priority groups, HAAD launched the H1N1 vaccination campaign in November 2009 by providing the vaccine to Haj pilgrims. We started the second phase of vaccination which covers pregnant women,” said Zaid Al Siksek, CEO of HAAD.<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /><o:p></o:p>

    Pregnant women who are receiving care at government healthcare services are advised to get the vaccine at their antenatal clinics in the hospital or at maternity and child healthcare centre in Primary Healthcare Clinics/Ambulatory Health Services.<o:p></o:p>

    Meanwhile, pregnant women who are receiving care from private clinics are advised to get a referral letter from their doctors to get the vaccine at select government clinics. (Please see box for clinics).<o:p></o:p>

    “Pregnant women are being offered the vaccination as a top priority because they are more likely to develop serious complications from H1N1 flu. The World Health Organisation (WHO) stated that up to 10 per cent of all hospitalised patients with H1N1 flu are women who are more than three months pregnant. In addition, pregnant women are more likely to need care in an intensive care unit compared with the general population,” explained Dr Jamal Al Mutawa, section head of Communicable Diseases at HAAD.<o:p></o:p>

    The H1N1 vaccine is licensed for use in pregnant women by the WHO, the US Food and Drug Administration and the European Commission who carefully considered all the evidence and recommended it for use.<o:p></o:p>

    Women who are known to have become pregnant shortly after receiving the vaccine have gone on to have normal pregnancies.<o:p></o:p>

    More information on HAAD customer services can be had by dialling 800800 or by calling the National Hotline for H1N1 prevention on 800358.<o:p></o:p>

    olivia@khaleejtimes.com<o:p> </o:p>
    <o:p></o:p>

    Abu Dhabi centres<o:p></o:p>

    Pregnant women who are receiving care from the private clinics are advised to get a referral letter from their doctors to get the vaccine at the following government clinics:<o:p></o:p>

    Abu Dhabi city<o:p></o:p>
    - disease Prevention and Screening Centre (DPSC)<o:p></o:p>
    - bain Al Jesrain Health Centre<o:p></o:p>
    - khalifa Health Centre<o:p></o:p>
    <o:p></o:p>

    Al Ain city<o:p></o:p>
    - disease Prevention and Screening Centre (DPSC)<o:p></o:p>
    - al Muwaiji Health Centre<o:p></o:p>
    - al Niyadat Health Centre<o:p></o:p>
    - mezyad Health Centre<o:p></o:p>
    <o:p></o:p>

    Al Gharbiya region<o:p></o:p>
    - madinat Zayed<o:p></o:p>
    - dalma<o:p></o:p>
    - selaa<o:p></o:p>
    - marfaa<o:p></o:p>
    - ghiathi

    <o:p></o:p>
    <o:p>http://www.khaleejtimes.com/DisplayA...section=theuae</o:p>
    Last edited by Pathfinder; January 6, 2010, 04:56 PM. Reason: Spacing
    "Safety and security don't just happen, they are the result of collective consensus and public investment. We owe our children, the most vulnerable citizens in our society, a life free of violence and fear."
    -Nelson Mandela

    Comment


    • #3
      Re: Seha launches Hajj Vaccination Campaign against H1N1

      H1N1 jab ready for health workers

      Hala Khalaf
      • Last Updated: January 12. 2010 12:42AM UAE / January 11. 2010 8:42PM GMT
      <!--

      --> Fatima al Shameri, left, and Mona Abdul Rahman, both nurses with an Abu Dhabi health provider, prepare swine flu vaccines at the Emirates Center for Studies and Strategic Research in the capital. Sammy Dallal / The National


      ABU DHABI // Healthcare workers at hospitals, clinics and health facilities across the emirate will be offered the H1N1 vaccination starting today as measures to prevent the spread of the disease are stepped up. The chronically ill and children are next on the list.

      Doctors, nurses, lab technicians and even administrative staff at both private and public centres are being urged to sign up for the jab Pandemrix, which has been approved by the World Health Organisation (WHO).

      ?By being vaccinated, health care workers decrease their likelihood of contracting swine flu and decrease the chance of infecting others,? said Zaid al Siksek, chief executive of Health Authority-Abu Dhabi (HAAD)

      A spokesman at HAAD confirmed that although the vaccine was not mandatory for either healthcare workers or pregnant women, who are also eligible for the vaccine and among the most at risk, it is ?highly recommended and encouraged.?

      There is no time limit or deadline for the administration of vaccines; healthcare workers as well as pregnant women will continue to be inoculated whenever they come forward to ask, he added.

      Mohammed al Romaithy, general manager of the National Emergency and

      Crisis Management Authority, yesterday revealed there would be two million doses of the H1N1 vaccines available in the country by the end of this month, speaking on the sidelines of the three-day Crisis and Emergency Management Conference in the capital.

      Patients with chronic diseases and illnesses that make them more susceptible to swine flu will be the next group to be inoculated, said HAAD.

      Infants and schoolchildren up to the age of 18 will be next.

      The WHO and the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention have identified five target groups that should receive the vaccine as a priority: pregnant women, children, health care workers, childcare workers and people with existing medical conditions which put them at higher risk of contracting the flu.

      In the UAE, Haj pilgrims were the first group to receive the vaccine.

      Dr Jamal al Mutawa, section head of communicable diseases at HAAD, said that healthcare workers had a responsibility to get vaccinated, even if it was not obligatory.

      ?To be able to provide healthcare, you have to care for your health care providers, which means we have to protect them in order to protect the system, should H1N1 spread or develop or mutate.?

      Many health care workers, said Dr al Mutawa, do not realise that they can transmit the disease to vulnerable groups, such as children, pregnant women or those with low immunity, such as cancer patients.

      Dr Moshera Atia, a medication safety pharmacist at Corniche Hospital in Abu Dhabi, said anyone at the hospital who refused to take the vaccine would have to give a reason why.

      ?We will talk to the ones who aren?t willing and try to convince them; otherwise, anyone who refuses the vaccine will be asked to fill out a form explaining the reason they declined it, so we can have on file who is and is not vaccinated,? she said.

      Amira Walli, director of public health at Corniche Hospital, said priority groups would be determined according to who interacted most with patients.

      ?Our staff who are most in contact with susceptible patients will be prioritised, but there is enough vaccines for all 1,200 staff at the hospital,? said Ms Walli.

      The Corniche Hospital in Abu Dhabi has already taken delivery of 10 vials of Pandemrix as a preliminary batch. Each vial has 10 doses of the vaccine, enough for 100 staff at a time.

      Six swine flu deaths have been reported in the Emirates, including two young women in the later stages of pregnancy. Pregnant women are 10 times more likely than the general population to be admitted to intensive care if they contract the H1N1 virus, according to the WHO. As of December 27, more than 208 countries and overseas territories or communities have reported over half a million confirmed cases of pandemic influenza H1N1, resulting in at least 12,220 deaths, according to WHO. However, the actual number is expected to be much higher. Many countries, including the UAE, have stopped confirming individual cases.


      hkhalaf@thenational.ae

      "Safety and security don't just happen, they are the result of collective consensus and public investment. We owe our children, the most vulnerable citizens in our society, a life free of violence and fear."
      -Nelson Mandela

      Comment


      • #4
        Re: Seha launches Hajj Vaccination Campaign against H1N1

        H1N1 Jabs for All as Cases Begin to Wane Worldwide

        Feb. 18--DUBAI -- Health authorities in Dubai have opened up H1N1 vaccinations for all groups of people as cases wane worldwide, according to an official.

        Until recently, the UAE was following the World Health Organisation's vaccination schedule that prioritised high risk groups such as pregnant women, people with chronic diseases and healthcare workers.

        But as H1N1 cases have significantly dropped world over, the demand for vaccination has dropped as well, according to Dr Hassan Shurie, Consultant and Head of Technical Services, Medical Fitness Centre.

        According to latest local figures, eight deaths have occurred and 5,000 people have been infected by the virus until November 2009, the doctor said during a presentation on "H1N1: Management and the Vaccine: How safe?" that he gave at the Obs-Gyne conference that concluded on Tuesday.

        "Getting vaccinated for H1N1 is an individual decision. If anybody wants to be vaccinated in the current scenario, they can visit a primary healthcare centre after a consultation with his general physician," he told Khaleej Times.

        "We have dropped the requirement to vaccinate high risk groups first and then open the vaccination for the general public who do not have any underlying health conditions," he added.

        According to the WHO's regional office, a number of countries in the region have already experienced a peak in activity during December 2009 and the beginning of January 2010. Cases reported from these countries during the peak season have also been low.

        "The second wave is over and there has been no increase in cases. And if this state continues, our department may stop purchasing the vaccine," hinted Dr Shurie. Meanwhile, vaccination for pregnant women started in the Northern Emirates last week. But there are only a few takers since the vaccine is optional, said a senior ministry official who did not wish to be named.

        "I cannot say if the country will or not place more orders for the vaccine. We know the cases are declining," he added. Last week, Qatar cancelled new orders for the vaccine. The ministry received 90,000 doses of GlaxoSmitheKline's Pandermrix intramuscular and nasal spray vaccine in December.

        http://dailyme.com/story/2010021700006138/h1n1-jabs-cases-begin-wane-worldwide.html#ixzz0fwBcjdi3
        "Safety and security don't just happen, they are the result of collective consensus and public investment. We owe our children, the most vulnerable citizens in our society, a life free of violence and fear."
        -Nelson Mandela

        Comment

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