The next update will be on Thursday, June 11, at 8:30 PST
The WHO Pandemic Alert level remains at Phase 5.
Influenza A (H1N1) Cases and Deaths by Country (as of 8 AM PST, June 9th)
*Lab confirmed cases and deaths have been provided by the WHO’s Influenza A (H1N1) – Update #45 and PHAC.
Local/National News
- An elderly woman from Quebec City has become the fourth Canadian to die of the novel H1N1 virus, health officials said Monday. AFP
- On Friday, the Government of Canada announced $10.8 million to fund a new influenza network to better connect researchers with public health officials. Led by Dr. Scott Halpern of Dalhousie University in Halifax, the network will involve 80 scientists at 30 research institutions across Canada. CBC
- The Alberta farmer whose pigs apparently contracted the novel H1N1 virus from an infected worker recently culled the rest of his herd. He had originally culled 500 of his pigs. He said he had the remaining 3,000 animals destroyed because they were under quarantine and he was unable to market them. The farmer is expected to seek government assistance with replacing his herd. CP
- On June 3rd, the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) announced that 331 new cases of influenza A (H1N1) had been confirmed in the country since June 5th. Ontario still has the most cases in Canada (1223), followed by Quebec (547), Saskatchewan (210), Alberta (172), British Columbia (145), Nova Scotia (76), Manitoba (40), Nunavut (25), PEI (3), New Brunswick (2), Northwest Territories (2), and the Yukon (1). Canada’s total case count is now at 2,446 with 121 hospitalizations and four deaths.
- The British Columbia Centre for Disease Control (BCCDC) is now reporting the following confirmed cases across the province:
- 56 in Fraser Health
- 4 in Interior Health
- 27 in Northern Health
- 41 in Vancouver Coastal Health
- 17 in Vancouver Island Health
International News
- Trust for America’s Health, a non-profit organization based in Washington, D.C., has issued a detailed critique, called “Pandemic Flu Preparedness: Lessons from the Frontlines”, examining early lessons learned from the response and ongoing concerns about overall U.S. preparedness for potential pandemic flu outbreak. The report praises federal, state, and local governments for having invested in pandemic planning, including the stockpiling of drugs and training public health officials to respond appropriately. It specifically commends U.S. President Barack Obama and the health officials who work under him for “providing clear, straightforward information to the public,” which the report says has both allayed fears and built trust.
- Chinese authorities have quarantined New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin, his wife, and a security guard in Shanghai after another traveler on their flight from New Jersey exhibited suspected H1N1 flu symptoms. Nagin's office said the three were quarantined in a hotel Sunday as a precaution and were exhibiting no flu symptoms. AP
- Forty-three more cases of H1N1 human influenza have been confirmed today in the biggest daily increase so far in Scotland. It brings the total number of confirmed cases in Scotland to 232. The figures were disclosed by Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon, who said the rise was in line with predictions and could increase further. Daily Record
- The Australian state, Victoria, is the epicenter of the H1N1 flu outbreak in Australia. So far the state has had over 1,000 cases and many other out-of-state cases have stemmed from contacts in Victoria’s city of Melbourne. Victoria's high infection rate has prompted Singapore to place a travel warning on the state and some Australian states have ordered children to be quarantined for a week when they travel home from Melbourne. In addition, an Australian health expert today warned that the county's indigenous populations may be at greater risk for infections because of greater levels of chronic diseases. The Age & ABC News
Will the World Health Organization (WHO) raise its Pandemic Alert Level?
Since the WHO level of pandemic alert was raised to phase 5, experts have been speculating as to if and when the alert level would move to phase 6. This speculation was further fueled when cases of Influenza A (H1N1) appeared in Europe (notably Spain and the UK). However, despite some indicative comments from WHO officials, the alert level was not raised.
Following the large jump in Japanese cases of Influenza A (H1N1), which occurred approximately two weeks ago, speculation surrounding a possible move to Phase VI was renewed. During this time, the WHO also discussed whether or not the alert level phases needed to encompass a severity index, as many officials worried that a move to phase 6 would foster undue panic.
Last week, Dr. Keiji Fukuda, the WHO assistant director-general for health security and the environment, stated, "Globally, we believe we're in phase 5 but are getting closer to phase 6." Fukuda also suggested that the WHO would discern an appropriate manner by which to describe the severity of the epidemic. There has been a large increase in cases of the virus in Australia, which have been determined to be community level spread. This definitively meets the WHO phase 6 definition (community level spread in countries in two world regions).
Finally, on Friday, the WHO consulted its emergency committee of flu experts on the severity of the swine flu virus and possible travel recommendations. This group is the same committee that recommended the Phase Alert level be raised from 3 to 4 and then from 4 to 5. However, this time the group simply gave advice regarding a number of parameters that can provide information for the assessment of the severity of the epidemic.
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