Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
09ASHGABAT1352
2009-10-23 13:58:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Ashgabat
Cable title:
TURKMENISTAN: HOSPITALS SWAMPED WITH SICK CHILDREN
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C O N F I D E N T I A L ASHGABAT 001352
SIPDIS
STATE FOR SCA/CEN; STATE FOR MED
E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/23/2019
TAGS: SOCI PGOV TX
SUBJECT: TURKMENISTAN: HOSPITALS SWAMPED WITH SICK CHILDREN
REF: ASHGABAT 1329
Classified By: Charge d'Affaires Sylvia Reed Curran. Reasons 1.4 (B) a
nd (D).
C O N F I D E N T I A L ASHGABAT 001352
SIPDIS
STATE FOR SCA/CEN; STATE FOR MED
E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/23/2019
TAGS: SOCI PGOV TX
SUBJECT: TURKMENISTAN: HOSPITALS SWAMPED WITH SICK CHILDREN
REF: ASHGABAT 1329
Classified By: Charge d'Affaires Sylvia Reed Curran. Reasons 1.4 (B) a
nd (D).
1. (C) Post's Foreign Service Health Practitioner and locally
employed medical officer received more information on 23
October about the spread of upper respiratory illnesses in
schoolchildren in Turkmenistan. Doctors at the Turkish-run
Central Hospital, considered the country's best health
facility, said they are inundated with children with upper
respiratory illnesses. Other hospitals are also overcrowded
with sick children. Pediatricians described the situation to
Embassy's local doctor as "really bad." Many of the children
have tested positive for Rotavirus and some with Hepatitis A,
both of which U.S. children are vaccinated against. (NOTE:
Although Hepatitis A is not primarily an upper respiratory
disease, it does weaken the immune system, making children
more susceptible to other illnesses. END NOTE.) Other
children have symptoms that are consistent with a cold, the
flu, or a variety of other illness. When Embassy's local
doctor asked other local physicians and hospital personnel
about H1N1, many refused to talk.
2. (C) Doctors at the Central Hospital said that Turkmenistan
does have H1N1 testing capability. However, the Chief of the
International Medical Center told us that Ministry of Health
has instructed hospitals to stop testing for flu. If a
suspicious case presents, the patient is directed to Ministry
of Health for further testing. There is only one location,
the Infectious Disease Center, that can do diagnostic
testing, and where all of the information will be kept. The
Central Hospital does have the Type A influenza quick test
and had seen some positive results.
3. (SBU) Reports continue to surface about children being out
of school. A third grade teacher at the Ashgabat
International School said that only three of her class of
nine were in school on 23 October. Contacts of the DATT who
have children attending the Russian school said that a
quarter to a half of the students are staying home, but some
of those may be home to prevent them from catching the flu.
4. (SBU) Embassy Ashgabat is prepared to treat H1N1 or
seasonal flu. Seasonal flu vaccinations are scheduled for
employees and families 29 October through 4 November, and the
medical unit has stocks of Personal Protective Equipment
(PPE) and Tamiflu. The medical unit has distributed H1N1
booklets in Russian and English and has placed posters around
the Embassy about sanitary practices to prevent the spread of
flu.
5. (C) COMMENT: The Government of Turkmenistan is unlikely to
release information about the upper respiratory disease that
is infecting so many children. The move to have all H1N1
testing done at one facility is very likely a move to control
information. Also, the Government has not released any
public health notices. The Embassy will treat flu cases
aggressively, as if they were H1N1, just to err on the side
of caution. END COMMENT.
CURRAN
SIPDIS
STATE FOR SCA/CEN; STATE FOR MED
E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/23/2019
TAGS: SOCI PGOV TX
SUBJECT: TURKMENISTAN: HOSPITALS SWAMPED WITH SICK CHILDREN
REF: ASHGABAT 1329
Classified By: Charge d'Affaires Sylvia Reed Curran. Reasons 1.4 (B) a
nd (D).
1. (C) Post's Foreign Service Health Practitioner and locally
employed medical officer received more information on 23
October about the spread of upper respiratory illnesses in
schoolchildren in Turkmenistan. Doctors at the Turkish-run
Central Hospital, considered the country's best health
facility, said they are inundated with children with upper
respiratory illnesses. Other hospitals are also overcrowded
with sick children. Pediatricians described the situation to
Embassy's local doctor as "really bad." Many of the children
have tested positive for Rotavirus and some with Hepatitis A,
both of which U.S. children are vaccinated against. (NOTE:
Although Hepatitis A is not primarily an upper respiratory
disease, it does weaken the immune system, making children
more susceptible to other illnesses. END NOTE.) Other
children have symptoms that are consistent with a cold, the
flu, or a variety of other illness. When Embassy's local
doctor asked other local physicians and hospital personnel
about H1N1, many refused to talk.
2. (C) Doctors at the Central Hospital said that Turkmenistan
does have H1N1 testing capability. However, the Chief of the
International Medical Center told us that Ministry of Health
has instructed hospitals to stop testing for flu. If a
suspicious case presents, the patient is directed to Ministry
of Health for further testing. There is only one location,
the Infectious Disease Center, that can do diagnostic
testing, and where all of the information will be kept. The
Central Hospital does have the Type A influenza quick test
and had seen some positive results.
3. (SBU) Reports continue to surface about children being out
of school. A third grade teacher at the Ashgabat
International School said that only three of her class of
nine were in school on 23 October. Contacts of the DATT who
have children attending the Russian school said that a
quarter to a half of the students are staying home, but some
of those may be home to prevent them from catching the flu.
4. (SBU) Embassy Ashgabat is prepared to treat H1N1 or
seasonal flu. Seasonal flu vaccinations are scheduled for
employees and families 29 October through 4 November, and the
medical unit has stocks of Personal Protective Equipment
(PPE) and Tamiflu. The medical unit has distributed H1N1
booklets in Russian and English and has placed posters around
the Embassy about sanitary practices to prevent the spread of
flu.
5. (C) COMMENT: The Government of Turkmenistan is unlikely to
release information about the upper respiratory disease that
is infecting so many children. The move to have all H1N1
testing done at one facility is very likely a move to control
information. Also, the Government has not released any
public health notices. The Embassy will treat flu cases
aggressively, as if they were H1N1, just to err on the side
of caution. END COMMENT.
CURRAN