Indonesia will likely be able to contain avian influenza
outbreaks in the future as the Health Ministry opened on Monday its first ever
isolation rooms with negative pressure, crucial in managing infectious
diseases, including avian influenza, and preventing their transmission.
Health Minister Endang Rahayu
Sedyaningsih said that the newly developed airborne infection isolation
facilities in Tangerang Regional Hospital in Tangerang, Banten, and in
Persahabatan Hospital in Jakarta, were specifically designed to help contain
avian influenza outbreaks in the country.
Human fatalities from H5N1 or
“bird flu” virus were mostly caused by delayed diagnosis and improper
treatment, she said.
“By developing such airborne
infection isolation rooms, we hope that hospitals can offer better treatment
for patients infected by the virus so that we can reduce bird flu-related
deaths,” she said on the sidelines of a ceremony to hand over the two isolation
rooms from the World Health Organization (WHO) to the Health Ministry in
Tangerang.
Despite ongoing efforts to
control the disease, avian influenza (H5N1) remains a serious public health
threat both globally and in Indonesia. Since the first human case emerged in
2003, there have been 571 cases with 335 fatalities globally, WHO data shows.
Citing data from the
Directorate General of Disease Control and Environmental Health (P2PL) at the
Health Ministry, Endang said that, as of November, the avian influenza (H5N1)
virus had spread to 32 provinces, contaminating poultry farms located in close
proximity to human settlements. Meanwhile, human infections have reached 182
cases with 150 deaths, making Indonesia the country with the highest number of
H5N1 cases.
Most of the bird flu infections
in Indonesia occurred when the virus spread from an animal to a human. “Since
2005, bird flu has become an emerging disease which spreads to humans from
animals, causing high fatalities among humans,” Endang said.
Studies show that influenza A
subtype H5 and H7 viruses have not only entered a new adjustment phase but they
even can mutate into a highly pathogenic avian influenza virus (HPAIV) which
causes not only a vicious systemic disease but also death.
While praising some significant
achievements being made by Indonesia in H5N1 control activities, Khanchit
Limpakarnjanarat, the WHO Representative to Indonesia, said a fatality rate of
above 80 percent still exists.
“This shows that the threat is
still there,” he said.
As the European Union (EU),
through the WHO, has channeled funds for “Implementing the National Strategic
Plan for Avian Influenza (INSPAI) project” in 2007, the Health Ministry
proposed in 2008 the development of airborne infection isolation rooms in
several hospitals aimed at improving bird flu management control.
Throughout the duration of the
project from December 2007 and December 2012, the Health Ministry expects to
create 10 isolation rooms with negative pressure.
Apart from the initial two
hospitals, the WHO is currently supporting the completion of similar facilities
funded by the EU and implemented by the United Nations Office for Project
Services (UNOPS) in eight other hospitals in Indonesia, which is worth US$13.5
million. These hospitals are Gatot Subroto Hospital and Sulianti Saroso
Respiratory and Infectious Diseases Hospital in Jakarta; Gunung Jati Hospital
in Cirebon, West Java; Dr. Kandouw Hospital in Manado, North Sulawesi; Dr.
Muwardi Hospital in Surakarta, Central Java; Ulin Hospital in Banjarmasin,
South Kalimantan; Abdul Muluk Hospital in Bandar Lampung; and Dr. Soetomo
Hospital in Surabaya, East Java.
Elly Burhaini Faizal
The Jakarta Post
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