ME&MEE

Here is a report from one of EA USA’s medical directors about the situation in Mexico:

Yesterday I had the opportunity to visit 4 private hospitals in Monterrey, the second largest city in Mexico.   There is mandatory reporting of all suspected and confirmed cases to the health department at all hospitals.  Most of the hospital staff and patients are wearing masks, but they tend to be ill-fitting (many people cover only their mouths, leaving their noses exposed) and low-quality – providing more psychological reassurance than real medical protection.

Overall, the volume is significantly down at all hospitals as people tend to be staying home.  They report increased numbers of outpatient visits, mostly of people who have no symptoms but want to get checked.  The Christus Muguerza hospital will have up to 50 patient visits in the emergency department on a normal morning and today has not had a single patient.  All hospitals have point-of-care testing for influenza A and are sending off the swine flu probes with a 48 hour turnaround time. Three out of the four hospitals shared the number of confirmed cases with me and they are all between 5-10, mostly being treated as outpatients.

At the Hospital San Jose Tec de Monterrey, the have set up open-sided tents in a courtyard, each with a registration desk and widely spaced apart chairs, to be used in the event they see a large increase in the number of patients, to prevent close contact of patients.

Although people have been hoarding Tamiflu, all the hospitals have sufficient stores to treat all patients who test positive fro influ enza A.  All hospitals are at 50%-60% capacity and have lots of respiratory isolation and ICU beds available.

All hospitals are willing to accept transfers of confirmed positive swine flu cases should any of the EA companies find themselves in a position where local laws prohibit repatriating sick individuals.

In general, streets are very empty.  Schools and many shops are closed.  Conferences and meetings of large groups have been canceled.  It is expected that most events surrounding the upcoming “Cinco de Mayo” (5 May) Independence Day celebration will be canceled by the government.