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Brostrom: No flu epidemic at CHC
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Posted on Mar 16 2005
The community does not need to worry about the spread of the flu virus, according to Department of Public Health Services Medical Director Dr. Richard J. Brostrom.
He said his office has not received reports about high flu activity on the island nor has it gotten reports of confirmed cases of influenza. He said the CHC does not generally receive a lot of flu cases at this point in the season.
“Luckily it’s been a mild flu season,” said Brostrom. He also said that the CNMI is getting out of the flu season “rather quickly.”
Brostrom assured that if the CNMI is hit by the flu epidemic, the DPH could easily request additional vaccines called “Flu Vax.” Brostrom also said there are a lot of other vaccines for emergency situations at the CHC in case of an outbreak.
“We’ve continued to use vaccine at an accelerated rate and we’ve delivered more vaccines this year than we had in the past,” he said.
He cautioned the public, though, about letting its guard down against the flu virus. The reason is because it is actually difficult for doctors to conduct more thorough checkups; oftentimes they are left with clinical diagnosis, Brostrom said.
He said that doctors do not always get the laboratory results because lab tests have to be conducted elsewhere. Specimens must be collected here and sent off to a laboratory outside the CNMI and that it takes at least a week to get the results back.
Brostrom, however, said that if the CNMI is at risk of a flu epidemic, he and the rest of his medical team would immediately conduct tests.
He also said the DPH is also updating its influenza plan and are actively working to improve it through more careful observation of flu cases and by staying abreast with news about other diseases related to flu, which include avian flu and influenza pandemic.
“But we’ll be prepared as anyone else. So far it’s been a good first season,” he said.
