Govt asked to intensify public information campaign on bird flu

Hera Diani, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Limited knowledge of how avian influenza is contracted and an inadequate poultry cull are only two of the problems this country has to address in order to contain the "extraordinary" outbreak.

However, doctors here said that despite the complicated challenges, the government should have done more in handling the outbreak, particularly in raising public awareness.

The H5N1 strain of bird flu has killed four people in the country, and may have caused the death of another girl, sparking fears that the disease could quickly turn into an epidemic.

Another two children are suspected of having the virus as their symptoms are similar. Nine other people have been admitted to Jakarta's infectious disease hospital with bird flu-like symptoms, including pneumonia and leukopenia, a drastic decline in the white blood cells.

Chairman of the Indonesian Doctor Association (IDI) Farid Anfasa Moeloek and pulmonologist Tjandra Yoga Aditama said the government should increase the education and information dissemination so that people are more aware of the outbreak.

As virus transmission has been linked to contacts with sick poultry, particularly their excrement, Farid said that it was very essential to keep everything clean.

"However, environmental health has long been neglected, not just within households, but also at corporations or factories," Farid, a former health minister, told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday.

He added that the government had held on too much to the "sick paradigm" that focuses on medication instead of the "healthy paradigm" that focuses on prevention, education and familiarization.

"The latter is certainly much cheaper," he said.

Meanwhile, Tjandra said more intensive information dissemination regarding the symptoms of the disease was needed, as its symptoms can rarely be distinguished from those of regular flu, which was why so many people went to the hospital when it was too late.

The antiviral medication (oseltamivir/tamiflu) that doctors are using also has several drawbacks, he said, particularly the limited supply and the fact that it only is effective if given within 40 hours of the onset of symptoms.

"It cannot heal the illness completely, either," he said, adding that the vaccine to prevent the disease had not yet been produced.

Media coverage of the outbreak has triggered fear among people about eating chicken or eggs, which, Tjandra said was largely unnecessary.

First, he asserted, avian influenza is transmitted as humans ingest the virus contained in the saliva or feces of sick fowl.

"It's the flu, much like a regular flu. People don't get either regular flu or bird flu from eating chicken. It has never happened so far. The avian influenza cases in the world have occurred because of contact with sick living chickens, or while slaughtering them."

Scientific studies also show that chicken that is cooked over 70 degrees Celsius will kill the virus, if there is any.