Panama health worker vacations cancelled as flu deaths mount

With 12 confirmed deaths form flu related problems, and ongoing investigation into six more deaths on the weekend, the Ministry of Health (MOH) has suspended vacations for all medical and administrative staff in the Panama metropolitan area.

The move is part of the measures taken under the contingency plan decreed by the authorities, following the increasing cases of influenza virus A (H1N1), the MOH reported.

Five of the weekend deaths occurred in the Metropolitan Social Security Hospital (CSS), and one of a child under 11 years in the province of Chiriqui.

The boy, who spent ten days confinement in the Hospital José Domingo de Obaldía, David, died from complications arising from influenza.

Gladys Guerrero, Department of Epidemiology, CSS, said all the deaths reported so far in CSS, have occurred in elderly patients with disease risk.

He said that according to statistics from the CSS for the same period in 2009 were 50 000 cases of people with flu, while this year the figure has increased by 3000 patients.

From the second week of June, cases increased considerably, so the CSS decided to extend its opening hours in all their units he said.
Healthclinics have been working through weekends on a country wide vaccination program