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Turkey's second swine flu death reported in Diyarbakır
The Health Ministry announced that with the death of the woman, whose name was not made public, swine flu fatalities have increased to two and the number of people diagnosed with the virus has risen to 1,411 since May 2009. It was also announced that 11 of those infected are being treated in hospital with three of them being in a critical condition. Turkey's first swine flu death occurred last Saturday in Ankara when Mustafa Güneş died at Ankara's Atatürk Sanatorium, where he had been receiving treatment.
The Health Ministry plans to begin administering vaccines against H1N1 influenza, popularly known as swine flu, on Nov. 2, starting with health workers. In a statement released on Thursday, the ministry announced that health personnel would start getting shots on Monday as no adverse effects had been observed during tests of the country's supply of swine flu vaccine. The next group to be vaccinated will be pilgrims embarking on hajj over the next few weeks.
The ministry is continuing its preparations to start vaccinating health workers, delivering vaccines to the relevant health centers and arranging briefings for the groups receiving shots. The ministry also said it would immediately provide photos taken during the vaccination of personnel, including Health Minister Recep Akdağ and ministry officials, to the press.
The first shipment of 500,000 doses of swine flu vaccine arrived in Turkey last week. Samples of the vaccine were tested at the Refik Saydam Public Health Center, Turkey’s national public health research laboratory, and then distributed to health institutions across Turkey. The center announced that no problems had been detected with the random samples evaluated.
Health Minister Akdağ recently announced that the vaccination of students is planned to start in late November and end in January. As Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said on Monday, vaccination will be voluntary and parents will decide whether to have their children vaccinated. In parallel with the controversy regarding the alleged dangers of the vaccine, there are also those in Turkey advising against receiving the shot. Following Turkey’s first swine flu fatality last weekend, Akdağ responded harshly to those who have said they will not be inoculated, mentioning the consensus among international scientists who favor the vaccine. The minister said opponents of the vaccine love populism and fame and accused them of confusing the nation. “The first death has indicated the absurdity of resisting vaccination,” he added.
Precautionary steps under way
As the number of people diagnosed with swine flu continues to increase across the country, with cases now in excess of 1,100, efforts to prevent the spread of the virus have intensified. Public transportation vehicles in various provinces are being disinfected, with the İstanbul and Ankara municipalities announcing that they were taking action to increase their preventative measures against the virus. Nearly all schools in Ankara, which were closed for a week last Monday and set to open on Nov. 2, have been disinfected. Other provinces that reported cases of the virus have also been disinfecting their schools.
In the meantime, the Anatolia news agency reported that Sivas Deputy Provincial Health Director Mehmet Erşan has also been diagnosed with swine flu. He is said to be in good condition.
Turkey reported its first case of swine flu in May. The number of cases had been increasing slowly in the country up until recently when figures almost doubled in a week.
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