Swine Flu Catches Up With Balkans

Only yesterday 12, 000 masks were sold in Skopje

Governments have begun to close schools, limit access to hospitals, and are advising citizens to avoid crowds, in an attempt to curb the spread of the disease.

While Bulgaria appears to be the country that is hardest hit in the region, health ministries in all countries are preparing for a wider outbreak, as the World Health Organisation warns that the virus will spread quickly in the coming months.

They are waiting for purchased vaccines to arrive, and some have ordered additional subsequent doses.  In the meantime, they are advising people to maintain personal hygiene, while some people are buying protective masks.

Health officials warn that there is no need for panic but stress that the situation should be taken seriously.

Below is a summary of how the disease is spreading, and what preparations each Balkan country has taken.

BULGARIA

Bulgaria appears to be the country that is the hardest hit in the region so far. The country’s health ministry on Friday declared a nation-wide epidemic as the number of swine flu cases reached an estimated 210 per 10,000 of the population.

The country’s Health Minister Bozhidar Nanev on Thursday announced that his ministry believes that a little over 100,000 Bulgarians have contracted the virus. Bulgaria's Chief Epidemiologist, Angel Kunchev, on Monday said that 150,000 people are most likely currently ill.

Over 450 laboratory-confirmed cases of swine flu have been registered so far. The virus has claimed eight fatalities.

All schools in the country are closed for an emergency break until 16 November. Cinemas, theatres and other public areas remain open, but people have been advised to avoid crowds.

The government has been caught off guard by the pandemic, and has requested the urgent delivery of 200,000 anti-viral drugs from the EU. It has also called on pharmaceutical companies to help. The current government, in office for just over 100 days, has blamed the previous government for not adequately planning ahead.

SERBIA

The country has registered 258 cases of the A/H1N1 swine flu influenza so far and seven fatalities. The Serbian government has provided additional funds to purchase three million doses of vaccine against the infection. Health Minister Tomica Milosavljevic announced last Friday that vaccination against the disease will begin in mid-December.

Vaccination will initially target priority groups including children, people with chronic conditions, pregnant women and health and public employees.

"My recommendation is that all the people receive the vaccine, because the benefit is much greater than the potential damage. The duration of the vaccine is 18 months, so that vaccination will be continued until all who wish to be inoculated have received the vaccine," broadcaster RTS quoted Milosavljevic as saying.

The government has extended the school autumn break until 16 November, noting that it does not rule out the possibility of schools being closed for a longer period.

The number of children in Belgrade’s kindergartens has drastically fallen. “Some one third of the kids are missing today but we are taking strong hygiene measures and are following the children’s health,” Kaca Tosovic from the kindergarten Pitagora told Balkan Insight.

The head of the government’s working group for following the epidemic, Predrag Kon, announced on Monday that several municipalities have announced an epidemic, but a nationwide epidemic will only be announced if and when the virus spreads across the capital.

Serbia’s market is running out of protective face masks. Pharmacies in the town of Kragujevac, where the first fatality was registered, reportedly have run out of masks, as they were selling more than 3,000 pieces a day.

Mirko Kovacevic from the company for making the masks, 'Septembar 9' from the town of Gornji Milanovac, says that the company operates in two shifts per day and produces between 55,000 and 60,000 masks. Production of protective masks will soon be doubled, he said.

ROMANIA

A further 39 new swine flu cases were reported in past 24 hours. The total amount of the infected has reached 882 with no fatalities, the Health Ministry says.

The government has suspended teaching for seven days at a couple of schools where the virus was registered.

The country’s Health State Secretary Adrian Streinu-Cercel said on 1 November that 20,000 people could die of swine flu in the country. However, he was forced to resign from his post the next day for making the statement, which the government called inappropriate. A presidential adviser told broadcaster Realitatea that Streinu-Cercel "should no longer appear in public, because he causes panic".

CROATIA

As many as 1,509 people have been infected with swine flu in Croatia, most in the capital of Zagreb, health officials estimate. An estimated 140 have been infected with the virus in Split where the first fatal outcome occurred.

The country registered its first swine flu fatality on last week in a 61-year-old man from the town of Split. The man was hospitalized on 21 October with high fever, pneumonia and kidney failures. Since then a second person has died.

One private high school has been closed after 60 of the 160 students fell ill. Health Minister Darko Milinovic said on Monday the disease has not reached epidemic proportions.

Epidemiologist  Mladen Smoljanovic expects that between 20 and 60 people will die of the virus. He added that his predictions are extrapolated by drawing on statistics on the disease from the southern hemisphere.

MACEDONIA

Health officials on Tuesday reported a further 14 new cases of swine flu, after registering 40 new cases over the weekend, raising the estimated total number reported to have been infected so far to approximately 120.

Though there are no fatalities, several infected show heavier symptoms of the disease.

The authorities are urging people to be cautious, avoid public gatherings and maintain personal hygiene. The hospitals are advised to restrict outside visits.

The Ministry of Health says that there are enough supplies of the Tamiflu medicine. The Ministry has ordered some 800,000 vaccines against the flu and hopes that they will arrive in the country by the end of this month.

Meanwhile Macedonians rushed in to the pharmacies to buy protective masks. Vendors report the demand for the masks in the past days has increased drastically. One of the biggest pharmacy chains in the country, Zegin, says theysold some 12,000 masks on Friday only.

MONTENEGRO

The number of reported cases has reached 33. The latest cases have been reported in the coastal town of Herceg Novi, from where several have been taken to the hospital in nearby Kotor.  

The hospital has sufficient quantities of antiviral medicine Tamiflu and there are also enough places for isolation and intensive care, the daily Pobjeda reports.

The country’s health ministry banned hospital visits on Saturday. The ministry’s working group for combating the flu has stated that the country’s health facilities are ready for the expected wave of swine flu cases.

Montenegrin Health Minister Miodrag Radunovic announced two weeks ago that vaccines will arrive in Montenegro early next year. Radunovic recalled that the ministry’s working group has decided to provide 50,000 vaccines, that will be sufficient, he said.

BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA

The country’s health authorities have registered 57 cases of the A/H1N1 swine flu virus.

''There were no difficult clinical cases in the Federation and the situation is under control,'' Federal Minister of Health Safer Omerovic announced last week. He added that the government has already ordered 30,000 vaccines against swine flu, which should be available by the year’s end. An additional 150,000 doses were ordered on Wednesday.

Omerovic added that there is no room for a panic. He called on citizens to maintain personal hygiene and avoid large gatherings.

KOSOVO

Four people are confirmed to have contracted the virus and are in hospital in northern Mitrovica, in serious condition, QIK news agency reported on Monday.

The hospital Director, Milan Jakovljevic, told media that 329 patients appeared with clinical signs of flu during the weekend. The biggest number of them is from Leposavic, Mitrovica, and Zvecan.

Kosovo’s Ministry of Health has transported 1,000 Tamiflu tablets to the clinic in nearby Gracanica.

The Institute of Public Health in Kosovo, IKSHP, has asked the ministry of education to order all schools to report on daily basis when pupils are missing, as this is the only way to follow up and verify whether any pupils have swine flu. The institute has also asked all schools to do additionally disinfect all surfaces and bathrooms

ALBANIA

Health officials have announced plans on Monday to vaccinate the public against the virus. Groups most at risk will be given priority including health care workers, patients with chronic conditions and pregnant women. The country's first cases of swine flu were reported in July.


For more information, please see Balkan Insight’s Timeline: Swine Flu in the Balkans, Update