17 Jun 2009
Leyte school suspends classes
By Vicente Labro, Joey A. Gabieta

TACLOBAN CITY, Philippines-A public high school in Leyte suspended its classes Tuesday after one of its students became the first Influenza A (H1N1) virus case in Eastern Visayas.

The region also reported its second case when a seaman tested positive for the H1N1 virus and has been confined at the Eastern Visayas Regional Medical Center (EVRMC) in Tacloban City, Department of Health (DOH) Edgardo Gonzaga said in an interview on Tuesday.

Gonzaga said that a third year student of the Philippine Science High School Eastern Visayas (PSHS-EV) campus in the village of Pawing, Palo town was found positive for H1N1 virus on Monday evening.

In a health advisory issued to PSHS-EV, Gonzaga explained that according to the DOH Interim Guidelines Nos. 10 and 14 on H1N1 cases, the school had to impose a 10-day suspension of classes to allow the students and the school personnel to comply with the 10-day home confinement to contain the virus.

The victim was now being treated at his home. It was not, however, immediately known where and how the student acquired the virus since he was reluctant to talk to DOH about his infection, Gonzaga told the Philippine Daily Inquirer.

On the other hand, the 44-year-old seaman arrived in the country from Singapore last June 9 and developed a fever three days later, Gonzaga said.

He explained that the DOH Eastern Visayas office received Wednesday morning the results of tests on the swab samples taken from seaman and submitted to the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine RITM).

Gonzaga added that the DOH has started tracing the persons who were in contact with the infected seaman.

Meanwhile, health officials have advised the other students, teachers and school personnel of the PSHS to stay at home, wear mask at all times for 10 days and exercise proper sanitation practices.

The DOH also urged those who develop flu symptoms, such as a temperature of 37.8 centigrade, running nose and cough, to consult a doctor immediately.

A student of the PSHS said health and school authorities were at the school early Tuesday morning to announce the suspension of classes and to advise them on what to do while on home confinement.

About a dozen people, including foreigners who were suspected to have been afflicted with the H1N1 virus, had been placed under observation earlier in the isolation rooms at the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) facility building located at the rear portion of Eastern Visayas Regional Medical Center here in Tacloban City.

However, no one among them had been found positive for the H1N1 virus, the DOH said.

The SARS Facility building was constructed about five years ago when the SARS outbreak hit the country and one of the victims came from Eastern Visayas.


Source:
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/regions/view/20090616-210812/Leyte-school-suspends-classes