Health Ministry: No cause for panic

Health Minister Tomica Milosavljevic says that the Torlak medical institute will be able to begin producing anti-flu vaccines by the end of the year. Speaking to B92, Milosavljevic stressed that preparations for pandemic alert levels 5 and 6 were under way, and that the spread of swine 'flu could not be stopped. Health Ministry: No cause for panic The minister nonetheless was at pains to reassure citizens that there was no cause for panic and that medical authorities were on standby. The Torlak Institute of Virology, Vaccines and Sera will receive certification from the World Health Organization (WHO) tomorrow confirming that it meets all the necessary conditions for stockpiling anti-flu vaccines, said the minister. Trial production of the vaccine in Serbia is due to begin soon. Milosavljevic has also received notification from the WHO that Torlak will receive a USD 1.2mn donation for urgent measures to ensure the institutions’ capacities to begin producing vaccines as soon as possible. According to agreements, everything should be in place to begin vaccine production by September 1 and trial production will begin in the final quarter of the year. The Torlak Institute is obliged to report any cases of swine ’flu in Serbia within 72 hours. The health minister says that there are currently no indications that any Serbian citizens in the danger zone have any symptoms of swine 'flu. His advice is to think globally and act locally: “There are no national borders with this infection, nor are there any national restrictions of this or that procedure. Our activities have to be global, you can’t shut your borders, that goes against all international rules as the world is a small village,“ he explained. “Globalization, the circulation of people, services and goods is such that you can neither lock yourself away in your own little room, nor lock yourself away in your own little country and protect yourself from a pandemic. No, you have to be part of that world and a part of its common efforts,“ Milosavljevic stressed. The government would be discussing purchasing of the necessary resources for any epidemic at tomorrow’s cabinet meeting, the minister told B92. Tomica Milosavljevic (FoNet, archive) "Serbia ready for swine flu" There have been no cases of swine ‘flu in Serbia, and health institutions say that the country is prepared for the virus. A member of the Health Ministry’s anti-pandemic task force, Branislav Tiodorovic, told B92 that domestic institutions were ready to react if the virus reached Serbia. “When we were readying ourselves for bird ‘flu, we saw then what the needs were in hospitals and designated centers to use. Those are the institute for tropical and infectious diseases in Belgrade, and the clinics for infectious diseases in Novi Sad, Nis and Kragujevac,” Tiodorovic said. “We equipped them with the necessary equipment—I am sure that something is still needed, but that was done back in the first wave—and the amount of medicine and material was also determined. Protective equipment is important too, which must exist with sanitary and health inspections,” he said. “So, that’s for the initial hit. We always prepare for the worst case, and we hope that the easiest case will happen. We’re always prepared for the first scenario,” Tiodorovic said. He said that health workers around the world were trying to determine why those who had become infected later recovered, and whether the virus got weaker with human contact. “Those who later contracted the ‘flu through human contact, it is possible that they did not have the same amount. There is always a sample group. That is still an estimate, because you have to treat what is being done in the U.S. and Mexico separately,” Tiodorovic said. “All the therapy that can be used and which was shown to be useful... has had a great effect,” he said. The Serbian Foreign Ministry called on the Mexican embassy to contact Serbian citizens in Mexico and to offer help if needed. No special arrangements have as yet been organized for tourists returning from Mexico, and the Health Ministry has made it known in airport literature who people should contact if they notice symptoms of swine ‘flu.

Health Ministry: No cause for panic

The minister nonetheless was at pains to reassure citizens that there was no cause for panic and that medical authorities were on standby.

The Torlak Institute of Virology, Vaccines and Sera will receive certification from the World Health Organization (WHO) tomorrow confirming that it meets all the necessary conditions for stockpiling anti-flu vaccines, said the minister.

Trial production of the vaccine in Serbia is due to begin soon.

Milosavljević has also received notification from the WHO that Torlak will receive a USD 1.2mn donation for urgent measures to ensure the institutions’ capacities to begin producing vaccines as soon as possible.

According to agreements, everything should be in place to begin vaccine production by September 1 and trial production will begin in the final quarter of the year.

The Torlak Institute is obliged to report any cases of swine ’flu in Serbia within 72 hours.

The health minister says that there are currently no indications that any Serbian citizens in the danger zone have any symptoms of swine 'flu.

His advice is to think globally and act locally: “There are no national borders with this infection, nor are there any national restrictions of this or that procedure. Our activities have to be global, you can’t shut your borders, that goes against all international rules as the world is a small village,“ he explained.

“Globalization, the circulation of people, services and goods is such that you can neither lock yourself away in your own little room, nor lock yourself away in your own little country and protect yourself from a pandemic. No, you have to be part of that world and a part of its common efforts,“ Milosavljević stressed.

The government would be discussing purchasing of the necessary resources for any epidemic at tomorrow’s cabinet meeting, the minister told B92.

"Serbia ready for swine flu"

There have been no cases of swine ‘flu in Serbia, and health institutions say that the country is prepared for the virus.

A member of the Health Ministry’s anti-pandemic task force, Branislav Tiodorović, told B92 that domestic institutions were ready to react if the virus reached Serbia.

“When we were readying ourselves for bird ‘flu, we saw then what the needs were in hospitals and designated centers to use. Those are the institute for tropical and infectious diseases in Belgrade, and the clinics for infectious diseases in Novi Sad, Niš and Kragujevac,” Tiodorović said.

“We equipped them with the necessary equipment—I am sure that something is still needed, but that was done back in the first wave—and the amount of medicine and material was also determined. Protective equipment is important too, which must exist with sanitary and health inspections,” he said.

“So, that’s for the initial hit. We always prepare for the worst case, and we hope that the easiest case will happen. We’re always prepared for the first scenario,” Tiodorović said.

He said that health workers around the world were trying to determine why those who had become infected later recovered, and whether the virus got weaker with human contact.

“Those who later contracted the ‘flu through human contact, it is possible that they did not have the same amount. There is always a sample group. That is still an estimate, because you have to treat what is being done in the U.S. and Mexico separately,” Tiodorović said.

“All the therapy that can be used and which was shown to be useful... has had a great effect,” he said.

The Serbian Foreign Ministry called on the Mexican embassy to contact Serbian citizens in Mexico and to offer help if needed.

No special arrangements have as yet been organized for tourists returning from Mexico, and the Health Ministry has made it known in airport literature who people should contact if they notice symptoms of swine ‘flu.