Swine flu reached pandemic levels in Dumfries and Galloway

Jul 6 2011 by Julie Watt, Dumfries Standard Wednesday

CASES of swine flu reached “pandemic” levels in Dumfries and Galloway.

Chief operating officer Jeff Ace revealed ten people were left fighting for their lives after being struck down by the deadly H1N1 virus in January.

Patients were put on ventilators in the high dependency unit at Dumfries Infirmary.

Speaking at the monthly health board meeting, Mr Ace said: “Levels of H1N1 in the population were lower than in 2009-10 however, winter 2010-11 saw greater numbers of H1N1 patients requiring ventilation. Demand peaked in January 2011 when for a short period 10 patients required ventilation.”

However, the NHS can only have four patients on ventilators at a time which meant they had to implement their pandemic plan.

Mr Ace said: “As our usual ventilated capacity is four patients this surge required implementation of aspects of our pandemic plan using the high dependency unit (HDU) for additional ventilation capacity.”

He added: “Staff responded extremely effectively to the surge and learning from this experience will be incorporated into the 2011-12 winter plan. In particular, consideration will be given to expanding non-invasive ventilation capacity, a development made possible by ward reconfiguration in DGRI.”

A report that went before the board said that Dumfries Infirmary suffered “significant pressures” during the flu season which started in November.

Mr Ace admitted there had been “significant bed availability issues, principally in DGRI. The most significant service impact was on critical care beds. And he admitted that the swine flu virus, that saw its first sufferer in Dumfries and Galloway in June 2009, has been more difficult than last year.”

Swine flu first spread to Scotland in April 2009 after outbreaks in Mexico, the US and Canada.

At its peak around 200 people from the region were visiting their GP surgeries every week after suffering from swine flu symptoms.

Two people from Dumfries and Galloway died during the outbreak.

Swine flu is a respiratory disease spread through coughing and sneezing. Symptoms mimic those of the normal flu bug.