Embassy wary of Jamaica under-reporting on H1N1

As the Ministry of Health continues its watch for any spread of the dreaded influenza A (H1N1) locally, the United States Embassy in Kingston is also monitoring the situation as it suspects that Jamaica might have under-reported the number of cases during the 2009 outbreak.

So far this year, the ministry has reported eight confirmed cases of H1N1 locally with two deaths linked to this outbreak.

But those figures might not be accepted by the Americans who seem to believe that Jamaica might be hiding the truth.

Information in a June 2009 diplomatic cable from the embassy, accessed by The Gleaner through the international whistle-blowing entity WikiLeaks, indicated that the Americans believe the Jamaican Government might have been 'cautious' with the reporting of the virus to avoid the effect it could have on tourism.

cautious about negative press

"The Jamaican economy continues to suffer under the global economic downturn and is heavily reliant on tourism revenues. The GOJ (Government of Jamaica) will likely remain cautious about negative press related to flu outbreaks on the island, fearing it could hurt tourism," the cable said.

However, Dr Marion Bullock-DuCasse, director of the emergency, disaster management and special services at the health ministry, told The Gleaner that the ministry has by no means understated the numbers as it has consistently reported all confirmed cases of the virus.

"We have a number of sentinel sites islandwide where we collect data on a number of diseases and conditions, so routinely all of those are reported. For H1N1, like any other influenza, the cases that we would be reporting on are the ones that would be presented for medical attention," she explained.

Bullock-DuCasse added: "It is a part of our routine surveillance system for us to collect data and report on cases, so there has been no under-reporting."

The US diplomatic cable noted that at the time it was being dispatched (June 2009), the Jamaican Government had confirmed 14 cases of H1N1 on the island.

The first two cases were from persons who arrived from New York on May 19. In the first week of June, five cases were detected, all related to people who travelled from the US.

The cable stated that as the number of cases increased, the Ministry of Health had admitted that at least two of the cases were internal transitions spread from contact on the island, as the individuals had not travelled during the time of the spread.

It noted Jamaica's challenges in testing and treating H1N1 but embassy staff reported that the country was getting help from the government of Mexico, which had provided the health ministry with 3,500 treatments of Tamiflu while the Pan-American Health Organisation had provided an additional 3,500.

The Kingston embassy also told Washington that a health official had reported that the ministry was in need of additional supplies of N95 masks and swabs for testing suspected cases.

Last week, Bullock-DuCasse told The Gleaner that the ministry continues to be vigilant in an effort to prevent or control the spread of the virus.

"We continue to urge the population to take the general measures to reduce transmission and we hope that hand washing and respiratory etiquette, such as the covering of coughs and sneezes, are still being carried out," Bullock-DuCasse said.

Since 2009, local health officials have confirmed 210 cases of H1N1 with nine related deaths.