The Ministry of Health and Sanitation have posted the following tips and advice for travellers going to or returning from a location affected with the new H1N1 virus:
- The Ministry of Health and Social Policy is following the outbreak of human influenza caused by new influenza A (H1N1)
- The Ministry is in constant contact with the World Health Organization to update the information on this outbreak.
- At present, according to the World Health Organization, the new influenza A (H1N1) is not a reason to cancel any trip.
If you are traveling to Tenerife or elsewhere in Spain the following advice from the Ministry of Health might be useful for you:
At destination:
Respiratory illnesses such as colds and flu are caused by viruses that infect the nose, throat and lungs. These diseases are usually spread from person to person when someone who is infected coughs or sneezes.
The preventive measures that must be taken into account are:
- Extreme care of personal hygiene by washing hands frequently with soap and water especially after coughing or sneezing. Do not share food, cups or silverware.
- Cover your nose and mouth when coughing or sneezing or sneeze with a tissue on the internal angle of the elbow. Throw the tissue in a plastic bag.
- Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth.
- Stay at home or in your hotel room when you are sick and seek medical attention when necessary.
- Practice good hygiene.
- Avoid contact with sick people (one or more of the following symptoms: fever, cough, shortness of breath, sore throat, headache, malaise, muscle aches, runny nose, some new cases of Influenza A (H1N1) may have diarrhea and vomiting).
Upon returning from trip
Given that you return from an area that could be affected by new influenza A (H1N1) is very important to keep in mind these tips:
- Pay close attention to your health during the 7 days following your return
- Follow your own country’s local advice for suspected swine flu if you have one or more of the following:
- Fever> 38 º C
- Cough
- Difficulty breathing
- Other symptoms such as muscle aches, headache, sore throat, runny nose, malaise, diarrhea or vomiting.
If you have returned from overseas to Tenerife and develop these symptoms you must contact the emergency services on telephone: 012.
The Ministry of Health for the Canary Islands reported that as of today there are now 31 cases of H1N1 in the islands.
The province of Santa Cruz de Tenerife has seen 18 of these cases most of which have fully recovered and only four which were admitted to hospital. Of these one has already been released and the others are all doing well.
PREPARATIONS BEFORE THE PANDEMIC
The Ministry of Health went on to state that the health authorites are keeping an ever closer eye on the situation and focussing efforts on the mitigation of the effects on influenza in patients before going on to add that the health system in Spain and therefore the Canary Islands are ready to handle this phase of the pandemic.
The Ministry of Health committed to supply an update on the development of the pandemic and government policies every Monday or more often should that become necessary.
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