Swine Flu Advice from WHO

While the international media is fighting to be the first to report the latest case of swine flu, I’ve seen or heard precious little practical advice on how we can protect ourselves.

Suspected cases have already been reported from various corners of the world, so for travellers it is not just a matter of staying away from a particular country or area.

Thankfully, the World Health Organization (WHO) has produced a Swine Influenza Frequently Asked Questions document, which covers questions regarding:

• Vaccine and drugs
• how to protect yourself from getting swine influenza
• what to do if you think, you may have swine influenza

According to their latest statement of 26 April 2009, WHO is not currently recommending any travel restrictions. This of course can change at any stage, and I would highly recommend all travellers to keep themselves informed via WHO’s Disease Outbreak News page and WHO’s Swine Influenza page.

I’ll be going on a little road trip through a number of European countries in May, and while I don’t see any reason to change my plans at the moment, I’ll most definitely be keeping an eye on the situation via WHO’s web site and the Foreign & Commonwealth Office’s travel advice.

External links

• WHO’s Swine Influenza Frequently Asked Questions (PDF)
• WHO’s Disease Outbreak News page
• WHO’s Swine Influenza page
• The Foreign & Commonwealth Office’s travel advice

TAGS: health, swine flu, travel