Official Flu Pandemic Prevention in SA thread (merged threads) (Bowie: military, buses)

[djw]

Originally Posted by majormadmax

This is the official count from the Texas Department of State Health Services...



So none in Bexar county...

Cheers! M2

So how do they classify the baby that's at Methodist with a confirmed case of the virus? Said he travelled here from elsewhere...but he was here when diagnosed.
Child With Swine Flu Hospitalized In SA - Health News Story - KSAT San Antonio

[Bowie]

Let's keep this thread on topic. I'm not even going to say please, because this is a public health emergency in our state. If you want to discuss the flu in general or whether the situation is overblown, do it in another thread. This is not the place for those angles on this topic. This thread is the place for local facts and information to be shared.

[Chaka]

Originally Posted by djw

So how do they classify the baby that's at Methodist with a confirmed case of the virus? Said he travelled here from elsewhere...but he was here when diagnosed.
Child With Swine Flu Hospitalized In SA - Health News Story - KSAT San Antonio

Every case is counted by the county of residence, as it is for every reportable disease. Many many many patients from outside Bexar county get diagnosed in Bexar County hospitals.

[majormadmax]

Originally Posted by Chaka

Every case is counted by the county of residence, as it is for every reportable disease. Many many many patients from outside Bexar county get diagnosed in Bexar County hospitals.

And if you think about it, that makes sense. Where a person lives and breathes is more important than where they are diagnosed...

[wCat]

Originally Posted by Chaka

Every case is counted by the county of residence, as it is for every reportable disease. Many many many patients from outside Bexar county get diagnosed in Bexar County hospitals.

Technically that's true, but when the media reports the location of the patient it's very confusing. This morning one story said the infant fatality was in Houston. Then I read here the child was from Brownsville....when in actuality they were from Mexico City. Some of the media was reporting fatality being in Texas....which was true....but official records should be reflective of Mexico stats, right?

I wish they would leave the reporting of these things to the CDC....period!

[Chaka]

Originally Posted by majormadmax

And if you think about it, that makes sense. Where a person lives and breathes is more important than where they are diagnosed...

Yes, usually. We do consider travel history and call those "imported" cases or if someone is officially a resident of another location but has spent the incubation period/likely infection period in a different location, that is as important

[Chaka]

Originally Posted by wCat

Technically that's true, but when the media reports the location of the patient it's very confusing. This morning one story said the infant fatality was in Houston. Then I read here the child was from Brownsville....when in actuality they were from Mexico City. Some of the media was reporting fatality being in Texas....which was true....but official records should be reflective of Mexico stats, right?

I wish they would leave the reporting of these things to the CDC....period!

The patient died in a Houston hospital. The fatality did occur in Texas. That is accurate.

From a public health perspective, however, it does matter where the patient originated and where they spent their infectious period (and where they were likely to become infected). This information is generally known by public health. The media doesn't always interpret the information they are given correctly. The public further does not always interpret the information they are given correctly.

This one would "count" for Texas if that is where the patient was when they became infected (note above my further clarification re: travel history and dynamics of residence in my response to majormadmax)

[wCat]

Originally Posted by Chaka

The patient died in a Houston hospital. The fatality did occur in Texas. That is accurate.

From a public health perspective, however, it does matter where the patient originated and where they spent their infectious period (and where they were likely to become infected). This information is generally known by public health. The media doesn't always interpret the information they are given correctly. The public further does not always interpret the information they are given correctly.

That's right...the media doesn't always interpret the information correctly...same thing I just said. Which makes it even trickier for the public to interpret said information if it's wrong to begin with.

[djw]

Originally Posted by Chaka

The patient died in a Houston hospital. The fatality did occur in Texas. That is accurate.

From a public health perspective, however, it does matter where the patient originated and where they spent their infectious period (and where they were likely to become infected). This information is generally known by public health. The media doesn't always interpret the information they are given correctly. The public further does not always interpret the information they are given correctly.

This one would "count" for Texas if that is where the patient was when they became infected (note above my further clarification re: travel history and dynamics of residence in my response to majormadmax)

probably doesn't help the media or the public that both of these children are 23 months old and reportedly both were first hospitilzed in Brownsville.

[wCat]

I had to read this several times to believe it. Talk about panic and paranoia!....We may have a couple of doozies in SAtown, but this Houston gal has jumped the shark!

One Houston City Council member was upset she had so little information about the case and was irritated that the child was allowed into Houston, even though the first public revelation of a swine flu outbreak didn't come until last week.

"The child was not a United States citizen," said Councilwoman Toni Lawrence, who hinted that the city should be involved in deciding whether a patient with an infectious disease would be cleared for transport here.

"I'm very concerned about this disease, I'm very concerned someone died from it and I'm very concerned council wasn't told about this. We need to be aware of this and continue to do things for Houston and not for anybody else."

Here's the link to the full story:

CDC: Texas swine flu death first in U.S.