With swine flu a step away from a full-blown pandemic, travel clinics field hundreds of questions every day
With swine flu a step away from a full-blown pandemic, travel clinics field hundreds of questions every day
With WHO raising its swine flu pandemic alert level to phase 5, city dwellers hoping to jet off for cooler destinations abroad are choosing to grin and bear Mumbai's heat.
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NO PROBLEM: Dr Tanu Singhal (left) of Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital counsels a patient baby at the travel clinic before departure. |
Fashion designer and Worli resident Dipti Shah, who wanted to leave for Austria, which has recorded one confirmed case of swine flu according to WHO, on May 24, said, "My friend is pregnant and I have a 15-month-old son. If there's even a marginal chance that they will contract the flu, the holiday's off." Even though her visa is in place, Shah is waiting to book her ticket.
Shah is only one of the 150 odd callers that Dr Tanu Singhal, head of the travel clinic in Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital, has responded to in a single day.
"Some want vaccines, some are keen to get medication and most are panicking. There's no vaccine and the medication is not available over the counter, but we are telling people that there are enough stocks to treat a possible outbreak and asking them to calm down," said Singhal, who's only fielded calls from travellers so far, but has appointments to physically examine travellers this week.
Singhal added that most of the callers had already availed of travel health insurance and those who hadn't, were strongly considering it.
Steps in IndiaMeanwhile, though India is yet to record a single case of A/H1N1 influenza, state governments have swung into action after the near scare at Delhi airport.
Call> 022 30666666 or 022 30999999 for the travel clinic at Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital
> The national 24x7 hotline 011-2391401 for enquiries and to report cases
Red alertWHO has raised its swine flu alert level to phase five of six, meaning a global outbreak is imminent, but still not yet officially declared. The declaration is a strong signal that a pandemic is imminent and that the time to finalise the organisation, communication and implementation of planned mitigation measures is short.
