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Vietnamese Government Issues Six Urgent Measures for Bird Flu Prevention

Posted on: Sunday, 6 November 2005, 06:00 CST

Text of report in English by Vietnamese news agency VNA website

Hanoi, 5 November: The Vietnamese government on 4 November issued six urgent measures to prevent an outbreak of H5N1 bird flu epidemic and type A (H5N1) flu pandemic among humans.

Firstly, the government will approve an urgent action plan in case of an outbreak of bird flu epidemic and human influenza pandemic. The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the Health Ministry will work with relevant ministries and branches to sum up opinions of Cabinet members to complete the action plan with more attention given to such issues as funding and supplies of equipment, medicines, materials and chemicals.

Secondly, on the basis of the urgent action plan, ministries, branches and People's Committees at different levels, agencies and units will urgently build their own detailed plans of action for implementation.

Thirdly, to actively make all necessary preparations and mobilize all forces to prevent and combat outbreak of influenza type A pandemic among humans. The Health Ministry and relevant ministries and branches, and localities guide all medical units from central to provincial, municipal, district and communal levels to prepare forces and equipment to take detailed preventive measures. At provincial hospitals, all contagious disease departments must prepare beds, rooms, machines, medical equipment, and medicines for emergency cases. The preventive medicine system, epidemiology institutes, and the Central Pasteur Institute are required to prepare for a rehearsal, lay in store anti-flu medicines, materials and chemicals, and organize mobile teams in case of an outbreak of flu pandemic. Provincial preventive medicine centres have to monitor, early detect and isolate any outbreak of flu epidemic, and work out plans to direct medical activities in case the first flu type A case is found in any locality.

Fourthly, to resolutely wipe out any disease signs and prevent the disease from spreading among poultry. The Ministries of Agriculture and Rural Development and Health, municipal and provincial People's Committees, and relevant ministries and agencies prepare their resources, give instructions and take timely drastic measures to contain bird flu.

The measures include sterilizing and ensuring hygiene for poultry farms, conducting vaccinations, closely monitoring the use of vaccines and the situation of the epidemic, planning and reorganizing poultry rearing, slaughtering and trading establishments, guaranteeing food and environment hygiene, and putting a ban on the rearing of poultry in cities and towns inner areas, particularly in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.

Other measures are strengthening quarantine, monitoring poultry slaughters, checking hygienic conditions at poultry farms, and temporarily halting the import of poultry, including ornamental birds and unprocessed poultry products, while protecting precious fowl breeds in localities and the centrally-run poultry breeding establishments.

Fifthly, the Ministry of Culture and Information and localities in coordination with the Ministries of Agriculture and Rural Development and Health, the Central Committee of the Vietnam Fatherland Front, socio-political organizations, and mass media should provide education information in conformity with the anti- bird flu requirements for every hamlet, village, community, agency, school and household.

Sixthly, regularly updating information on the happenings of the avian and human influenza in the world. Coordinating with and taking advantage of support from foreign countries, international organizations and foreign scientists to prevent an outbreak of the epidemic and effectively control it once it occurs.

The government appoints the National Steering Committee for bird flu prevention, and the National Steering Committee for Prevention of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) and human influenza to regularly oversee the execution of the Resolution by ministries, branches, and localities and to periodically report it to the Prime Minister.

The government recommends that bird-flu has since late 2003 happened in many countries and territories, including Vietnam. In Vietnam, avian influenza and human influenza type A have broken out in three times, and 50m fowls have been culled and 91 people have been infected, of whom 41 have died. At present, there is no vaccine or any specific remedy for H5N1 type A among humans, the anti-virus Tamiflu for H5N1 type A prevention and treatment has not been clearly defined; it is used according to a doctor's prescription, and is not yet produced in Vietnam. A pandemic may break out unless everybody strictly follows the prevention regulations issued by the health and veterinary sectors.

Dr Nguyen Tran Hien, Head of the Central Institute of Epidemiology, said on Nov. 4 that among the medical waste samples sent to the institute for tests, no sign of H5N1 type A flu has been found.

Source: BBC Monitoring Asia Pacific

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