Swine Flu Claims Two Lives

Another two people have died from swine flu in Ireland, the Health Service Executive has announced.

A HSE spokesman revealed the news at a briefing yesterday evening. The spokesman said one woman was from the west of the country and the other from the eastern region.

Both women are believed to have had underlying medical conditions. Their deaths bring the total number of swine flu fatalities in the Republic to four.

The news of the deaths comes within days of Ireland's Food Safety Authority (FSAI) declaring there is no reason for public concern over the discovery of the H1N1 flu virus in a herd of Irish pigs.

The Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food confirmed the first pig herd to have tested positive for the Influenza H1N1 earlier this week, but stated it was not unexpected given the widespread occurrence of the pandemic virus.

The FSAI said members of the public should not be concerned about eating pork products and that there had been no reported human cases of the virus spreading from the consumption of properly cooked pork or pork products.

A spokesman for the authority said: "The FSAI reassures consumers that pork is safe to eat, but as always, to be mindful of good hygienic handling practices and cooking products thoroughly prior to consumption."

Meanwhile this week, the Medical Council has broken convention by recommending all medical practitioners receive the swine flu vaccine when it becomes available.

According to the council, immunisation was vital to prevent contraction of the virus to “protect themselves, patients and colleagues when assessing, treating and vaccinating members of the general public.”

In a statement issued earlier this week, the Council said doctors had to be aware of their professional accountability to control disease transmission amongst colleagues and patients.

In August, a young woman with an underlying health condition and a man in his 50s with no apparent underlying condition died.

(DW/KMcA)