Kenya: Experts wary of bird flu

Experts wary of bird flu
By Kenneth Kwama
SO far, Kenya has been lucky. It has been nearly two
years since the bird flu outbreak emerged and more
than eight months since the illness spread from its
birthplace in Asia.
Yet with more than 300 cases in at least eight
countries to date, a disease that has rocked Asian
markets, ruined the tourist trade of an entire region
and spread panic through some of the world’s largest
countries has largely passed by.
But last week, health experts meeting in Kampala to
discuss ways for sustainable healthcare financing in
Africa, warned that time could be nigh.
“This region is susceptible because it sits on the
path for migratory birds from the affected areas. The
fact that Africa lacks manpower and the infrastructure
needed to deal with the spread of the virus is also
worrying,” says Dr Bart Criel of the Institute of
Tropical Medicine in Antwerp, Belgium.
One month ago, a team of ornithologists from the
National Museums in Nairobi said they were collecting
specimens from the birds’ anus and throats and sending
them to the Kenya Medical Research Institute for tests
for avian influenza-the virus that cause the disease.
Although none of these tests has come out positive,
Kenya went into red alert following Ethiopia’s
announcement last week that it was commencing a series
of tests to confirm whether a couple of pigeons found
dead on the outskirts of its capital city, Addis
Ababa, were infected with the avian influenza.
A positive confirmation from the Ethiopian experiment
could put the region on a do-not-visit list, heralding
economic and health catastrophes.
“We hope to lobby governments to stop using
cost-recovery mechanisms for health services because
it excludes the poor from health services and this is
bad for children,” says Neil Turner, programme
director of Save the Children UK’s South Sudan
Programme.
The Kampala meeting was organised by the British
charity in collaboration with the World Health
Organisation (WHO), and other development partners.
Last month, the Government ruled out importing two
antiviral drugs used in treating the flu.
But the Director of Medical Services, Dr James Nyikal
later reassured Kenyans that the WHO would ensure the
drugs-Tamiflu and Zanavir-were available in case of an
outbreak.
The WHO on its part, is raising serious concerns it
says needs to be addressed for the region to weather
the storm.
Dr Dick Johnson of the WHO, says that poverty and
illiteracy could hamper any hopes of successful
treatment.
“The existing infrastructure cannot support an
intensive medical operation,” he says. “About 40
percent of the population lack access to safe drinking
water, a similar percentage is illiterate and 47
percent don’t have access to adequate sanitation
facilities,” he says.
According to the WHO, 35 countries spend less than
Sh2500 per capita, regarded as the minimum for
providing an essential healthcare package.
But this is still beyond the scope of the majority
poor and health experts are warning that apathy to
seeking treatment and not the virus itself, would be
the catastrophic killer should the bird flu strike.
“Most people in the region don’t seek treatment
because they can’t afford the cost. It could be hard
getting people to go to the hospitals until all the
fees are scrapped and this could take some time,” says
Regina Keith, a senior health policy advisor with the
British charity, Save the Children-UK.
The charges, she says, are in place in most
sub-Saharan African countries.
“The fees and other out of pocket costs are a
significant deterrent for families seeking healthcare,
leading to dangerous delays in seeking help outside
the household.”
Despite intensive research in labs allover the world,
scientists still have more questions than answers
about Avian influenza.
With fewer than 300 known avian influenza deaths so
far, the worldwide toll is tiny compared with, say,
the millions of people who died from Aids last year.
But if the virus continues to spread, its numbers
could skyrocket.
Treatment is a grueling complicated affair that
involves putting patients in isolation while they are
being treated and strict adherence is essential.
If there is any good news for Africa from the WHO, it
is the endorsement of a previous health ministers’
resolution to vouch for the local production of
generic medicines and the removal of procedural
requirements, relating to exports and imports of
generic drugs.
Under compulsory licensing, countries can be allowed
to produce patent-protected drugs to address health
emergencies.
And the Kampala meeting endorsed a resolution by the
ministers to mandate the African Union Commission to
alert heads of state of the imminent threat of the
avian influenza pandemic and seek technical assistance
for member states on strengthening integrated disease
surveillance and response.