Influenza A (H1N1) Cases and Deaths*
*Cases reported by The World Health Organization (WHO) are as of May 23, 2010
National News
Ontario grades its pandemic response as adequate but improvable
Ontario’s Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Arlene King released a report reviewing that province’s response during the H1N1 pandemic outbreak. While she said Ontario’s handling of the pandemic was fairly comprehensive and effective, she did have criticisms for the manner in which the supply of vaccine was maintained and the lack of coordination in vaccine programs from region to region. “There was never an alignment between H1N1 vaccine supply, demand and our capacity to deliver it,” she said when describing the line ups for vaccine when vaccinations were in short supply and the subsequent fading interest once the supply began to grow.
Much of the uncertainty was compounded by different regions taking varying approaches in their vaccination campaigns and her office’s lack of authority to compel the province's 36 health boards to follow vaccine priority groups recommended by the World Health Organization and set by the federal and provincial governments. "They resulted in, I think, in really frankly shaking some public confidence in terms of how the pandemic was being managed. And I think ultimately those kinds of things result in concerns around public safety as well." Winnipeg Free Press
International News
Public pandemic information didn’t make enough of a case for vaccination
The RAND Corporation has conducted poll that compares public attitudes towards seasonal influenza and the H1N1 pandemic. While people considered H1N1 to be more of a concern than seasonal flu, the vaccine was also seen as less safe. As a result, vaccination up-take compared to that for the seasonal flu was lower. The researchers say people garnered their information from a wide variety of sources, and were told repeatedly how severe a threat the pandemic could be, but received relatively little information about the safety and value of vaccination. Preventative Medicine
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