In India, Gujarat has the second highest number of cases of, and mortality rate for, swine flu after Maharashtra. This year, with 316 deaths and 4,013 cases the killer flu has presented itself as the main health challenge.
In four cities
In the last two weeks, it has left more than 150 dead while more than 2,000 new cases have been registered across the State, concentrated in the four main cities of Ahmedabad, Surat, Rajkot and Vadodara.
After media criticism and strong rebuke by the Gujarat High Court in the wake of a petition, the State government has now activated the health-care machinery to tackle the flu.
Chief Minister Vijay Rupani and Health Minister Shankar Chaudhary have visited civil hospitals in Ahmedabad, Surat, Rajkot and Vadodara to inspect facilities set up to handle patients; all government and private hospitals have been stocked with Tamiflu tablets.
A three-member Central government team has also visited the State and held consultations with State government officials and Health Department personnel and public health experts on control measures.
However, despite the prompt actions, public health experts and medical practitioners feel that the measures should have begun early this year when there were signs of flu rearing its head in April and May.
“It’s a failure of the State government and Health Department, which never took the disease seriously. Not only this year, since 2009 when the flu came to India, Gujarat has been witnessing the highest casualty [rates] and number of cases,” a doctor told The Hindu.
Many deficiencies
According to another doctor who is on a committee set up by the State government, there is a lack of proper training and infrastructure in government hospitals.
In addition, people are not aware of the flu and don’t seek medical help despite experiencing symptoms such as fever, cold, body ache and a sore throat.
In an affidavit filed before a judicial Bench — of Justices M.R. Shah and B.N. Karia — the government has contended that the flu is no longer a pandemic. It adds that it has become a seasonal flu and the mortality rate due to H1N1 virus has fallen to 10% this year against 16.8% in 2009.
“At present, influenza H1N1 is being treated as a seasonal influenza, meaning the H1N1 virus has ceased to be a pandemic. The mortality rate has also been substantially reduced to 10% from 16.8% in 2009,” the government submitted to the Bench.
As many as 1,075 beds and 200 ventilators have been provided in isolation wards across the State where swine flu patients are being treated, the affidavit says.
More than 2,000 health-care workers and doctors are treating patients, while 17,000 health workers are engaged in house-to-house rapid surveillance, covering three crore people in the first phase and two crore in the second.
Government’s defence
“You can see the mortality rate is down every year, which shows [that] the actions by the State are bearing positive results,” Mr. Shankar Chaudhary said, dismissing charges that the government has failed in tackling the flu.
In its affidavit, the government highlighted the history of various viruses emphasising that while in their early stages they had claimed many lives, the mortality rate had eventually reduced. Even swine flu, when it spread first in 2009, had created havoc worldwide and claimed more than six lakh lives, the government claimed.
Talking about Spanish flu, Asian flu and Hong Kong flu, the State government said that even the World Health Organisation had, in August 2010, declared swine flu to be in a post-pandemic phase and that it would behave as a seasonal influenza.
mahesh.langa@thehindu.co.in