After undergoing supervised isolation by the local public health authorities and overcoming the virus, nearly 63% of the persons that had been diagnosed with the influenza A (H1N1), which has not caused a single fatality in the country, have been cured and have returned to their daily activities according to the Ministry of Health (MINSA).
Last May 20, Panamá became the second country in the world and the first in Central America to present to the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) a strain of the virus to help with the production of a vaccine.
Having a facility in Panamá such as The Gorgas Memorial Institute of Tropical and Preventive Medicine (GMITP), that sends regularly strains of seasonal influenza virus to various laboratories has put Panamá in an outstanding international level.
Parallel to these contributions and scientific investigations, the health authorities of Panamá have sent continued messages of prevention and control through mass media communications with the participation of authorized spokepersons in training and delivery of informational material to different areas of the society.
Due to the positive results of this awareness campaign and the reduction of the cases, Panamanian health authorities have announced the flexibility of some of the preventions set up to control the spread of the virus and have cut the restrictions to celebrate massive events and have recommended the use of the face mask only in cases of respiratory problems to the personnel of the Tocumen International Airport.
Panama, June 2009.
By ATP (Panamanian Tourism Authority)
