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Intensive Care Beds Fill in New Zealand as Flu Hits (Update2)
By Jason Gale
July 21 (Bloomberg) -- Intensive care units in some New Zealand hospitals are full and a spike in flu cases has prompted doctors to postpone non-essential surgery to ease pressure on medical services, the country?s health ministry said.
Seventy-four people are hospitalized with the H1N1 pandemic virus, also known as swine flu, with 26 in intensive care, in the nation of 4.2 million people, the ministry said in a statement today.
New Zealand, suffering the worst influenza season in more than a decade, may be a harbinger for other countries that have yet to experience the pandemic virus during winter, when colder, drier weather favors transmission. Disease trackers are watching how the pandemic evolves during the Southern Hemisphere winter to gauge its impact in the U.S. and Europe.
?It?s a salutary warning to other countries,? said Lance Jennings, a clinical virologist with Canterbury Health Laboratories in Christchurch. ?It?s certainly been a strain on resources.?
Shortages of equipment, including respiratory support units, have been localized, Jennings said. Even with the pressure from both pandemic and seasonal flu, the nation?s health services ?are coping well,? Health Minister Tony Ryall said. Hospitals, some of which have deferred elective surgeries, may come under more strain as the flu season worsens, he said.
Flu Call Center
?We have not yet reached a peak in the number of people who will experience influenza this year,? Ryall said in the statement. ?We anticipate that our health services will continue to be under pressure for some time.?
People suffering flu-like symptoms are asked to telephone a so-called healthline for a verbal assessment. From July 11 to 17, about a third of all calls to the healthline were flu- related, the health ministry said today.
Those deemed to need a medical consultation by call center staff are asked to attend a community assessment unit, which will refer patients to the hospital if they are sufficiently ill, Jennings said.
?This strategy is keeping cases of influenza away from general practices and it?s also protecting our emergency departments,? he said. ?The more severe cases are being admitted to the hospital and our intensive care units are being flooded.?
Doctors reported 275.3 cases of flu-like illness per 100,000 people across the country in the week ended July 12, the Institute of Environmental Science and Research and National Influenza Centre said. The rate is about three times last year?s peak.
Confirmed cases total 2,443, up from 2,368 yesterday. The actual number is ?significantly higher? as only a small proportion of people with symptoms are being tested, the ministry said today.
A child who died during the past week and had suffered from underlying medical problems is New Zealand?s 11th swine flu fatality, the health ministry said today.
To contact the reporter on this story: Jason Gale in Singapore at j.gale@bloomberg.net
Last Updated: July 21, 2009 05:28 EDT
By Jason Gale
July 21 (Bloomberg) -- Intensive care units in some New Zealand hospitals are full and a spike in flu cases has prompted doctors to postpone non-essential surgery to ease pressure on medical services, the country?s health ministry said.
Seventy-four people are hospitalized with the H1N1 pandemic virus, also known as swine flu, with 26 in intensive care, in the nation of 4.2 million people, the ministry said in a statement today.
New Zealand, suffering the worst influenza season in more than a decade, may be a harbinger for other countries that have yet to experience the pandemic virus during winter, when colder, drier weather favors transmission. Disease trackers are watching how the pandemic evolves during the Southern Hemisphere winter to gauge its impact in the U.S. and Europe.
?It?s a salutary warning to other countries,? said Lance Jennings, a clinical virologist with Canterbury Health Laboratories in Christchurch. ?It?s certainly been a strain on resources.?
Shortages of equipment, including respiratory support units, have been localized, Jennings said. Even with the pressure from both pandemic and seasonal flu, the nation?s health services ?are coping well,? Health Minister Tony Ryall said. Hospitals, some of which have deferred elective surgeries, may come under more strain as the flu season worsens, he said.
Flu Call Center
?We have not yet reached a peak in the number of people who will experience influenza this year,? Ryall said in the statement. ?We anticipate that our health services will continue to be under pressure for some time.?
People suffering flu-like symptoms are asked to telephone a so-called healthline for a verbal assessment. From July 11 to 17, about a third of all calls to the healthline were flu- related, the health ministry said today.
Those deemed to need a medical consultation by call center staff are asked to attend a community assessment unit, which will refer patients to the hospital if they are sufficiently ill, Jennings said.
?This strategy is keeping cases of influenza away from general practices and it?s also protecting our emergency departments,? he said. ?The more severe cases are being admitted to the hospital and our intensive care units are being flooded.?
Doctors reported 275.3 cases of flu-like illness per 100,000 people across the country in the week ended July 12, the Institute of Environmental Science and Research and National Influenza Centre said. The rate is about three times last year?s peak.
Confirmed cases total 2,443, up from 2,368 yesterday. The actual number is ?significantly higher? as only a small proportion of people with symptoms are being tested, the ministry said today.
A child who died during the past week and had suffered from underlying medical problems is New Zealand?s 11th swine flu fatality, the health ministry said today.
To contact the reporter on this story: Jason Gale in Singapore at j.gale@bloomberg.net
Last Updated: July 21, 2009 05:28 EDT
