Swine flu RSS feed for the Swine flu tag
found 67 stories.
News
Alison Dayani B'ham Mail 21 Jan 11
A pregnant woman claimed she was refused a swine flu jab by a Walsall surgery – despite Government warnings that mums-to-be should have the inoculation.
Teacher Tracey Adams said she was turned away from Limes NHS Medical Centre in Birmingham Road, Walsall, because of a severe shortage of jab doses…
News
Brett Gibbons B'ham Mail 30 Dec 10
A makeshift ward was set up in a lounge at Walsall Manor Hospital as it struggled under the pressure of a new wave of flu cases.
Elderly patients at Walsall’s newly-refurbished hospital were forced to spend part of the Christmas holiday in temporary accommodation set up in a lounge…
News
B'ham Mail 28 Oct 10
The Government has been urged to instruct GPs to offer seasonal flu vaccines separately from swine flu vaccines this winter by a Walsall MP.
Valerie Vaz, Labour MP for Walsall South, warned that some doctors were not allowing patients to opt out of having the swine flu vaccine, which she said could lead to serious side effects…
News
Vicky Farncomber B'ham Mail 9 Jan 10
Two people in the West Midlands have died after contracting swine flu over Christmas, the NHS said. This takes the total number of deaths where tests have proved positive for the H1N1 virus to 37 in the region…
News
B'ham Post 9 Dec 09
Researchers at Birmingham University have published findings that the antibiotic drug, given to thousands of suspected H1N1 patients before the swine flu jab was created, has no guarantee of preventing dangerous complications…
News
George Makin The YamYam 29 Nov 09
Health chiefs have denied that the West Midlands has suffered the highest number of swine flu cases because it was least prepared for pandemic influenza.
The release of self assessment surveys of the readiness of pandemic influenza plans under freedom of information laws showed West Midlands’ Strategic Health Authority gave itself a score of 68 per cent, the lowest for the ten Strategic Health Authorities in England.
The West Midlands has seen 31 fatal cases out of 163 in England since the outbreak began in April only surpassed by London with 50 deaths.
By the end of June, the West Midlands was dealing with 2,424 out of 5,704 confirmed patients in England.
The survey of NHS trusts’ pandemic plans was compiled in February.
The region also had some of the lowest individual scores with Dudley and Walsall Mental Health Trust giving itself only 17, while Warwickshire Primary Care Trust, which has responsibility for public health, rated its readiness at 44, just above the worst rated PCT, Rotherham, at 37.
The Department of Health which released the information in November after a five month delay, said the scores were ‘subjective’ because the swine flu outbreak prevented it from validating the surveys.
A spokesman said: “It is wrong to suggest the number of swine flu cases in an area relate to how prepared the local NHS is for a pandemic.
“London and the West Midlands have seen the highest number of swine flu cases in England. Death rates correlate to the number of cases, so it is not surprising these areas have seen the highest number of deaths.
“Factors which influence the rate of cases in an area, particularly in the early stages of the pandemic, include links to cases imported from abroad, and urban density.”
It argued the surveys were out of date as they were conducted in December last year, four months before swine flu hit Britain.
In its response, West Midlands SHA, said: “Since this audit and the start of the pandemic, a significant amount of work was undertaken to improve the NHS’ preparedness for a pandemic.
“These plans were regularly and rigorously tested and updated in line with national revised planning assumptions of the disease.”
It added: “We would like to reassure the public across the West Midlands that we are in a higher state of readiness than ever before and that our plans ensure that the NHS is as resilient as possible as it could be to cope with the situation it faces now and could in the future.”
In July the NHS began recording cases by GP consultations for flu and flu-like illnesses per 100,000 of population.
The SHA said the latest figurers for the West Midlands are 62.2, compared to the England average of 50.
News
BBC 26 Nov 09
Latest figures from NHS West Midlands show the total number of people who have died after testing positively for swine flu in the region has risen to 31…
News
Nick Triggle BBC News 24 Nov 09
The Health Protection Agency has reviewed blood tests which showed higher levels of swine flu infection among children than originally thought. In hotspot areas, such as London and the West Midlands, a third of school-aged children may have had the virus, but only one in 10 or less got ill…
News
B'ham Mail 20 Nov 09
Figures released by NHS West Midlands show the total number of swine-flu related deaths in the region has increased by four to stand at 27…
News
Walsall Advertiser 22 Oct 09
A swine flu vaccination programme for patients in at-risk categories and frontline healthcare workers across Walsall started this week, with those affected to be notified by their GP…