Sunday, May 03, 2009
Port of Spain, May 3, 2009: The Ministry of health would like to update the national community on Influenza A/H1N1 developments.
To date 58 persons have been tested for Influenza A/H1N1 in Trinidad and Tobago. That includes 36 people from the under 17- national football team. The remaining 22 included both non-nationals and nationals who had traveled to or had contact with someone from Mexico. All laboratory results came back negative, including the one person who was tested for the virus in Tobago. Please note that the turn around time for these first screening results is just a few hours.
 With regards to the Mexican tanker, which was isolated at the Point Lisas Port, all persons who have been tested have now been cleared of any suspicion of Influenza/A H1N1 infection, as their test results were negative. Consequently, the ship will be released soon.
The Ministry has also been conducting a series of multi-sectoral meetings with all stakeholders involved in the current intervention.
Once again, the Ministry of Health is urging all citizens to practice good hygiene (washing hands) and proper respiratory etiquette (cover your cough, sneeze, etc). People who display flu-like symptoms, AND have traveled recently to any of the affected areas OR have been in contact with anyone who has, are urged to visit their doctor or health centre immediately. Anyone who displays the symptoms and feels he/she should see a doctor is also encouraged to do so.
All citizens are further urged to regularly check the Ministry’s website, www.health.gov.tt for the latest updates on Influenza A/H1N1 and respective official Ministry guidelines. Please also join the Ministry’s Facebook group, follow us on Twitter and feel free to contact us at corpcomm@health.gov.tt with any further queries.
 Click here to download the full media release (Adobe Acrobat PDF, 46KB)
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