Personal, Occupational, and Public Health Perspectives on Dealing with the First Case of Influenza A (H1N1) in the United Arab Emirates

Shah, Syed M.; Aw, Tar-Ching; Blair, Iain; Hashmey, Rayhan; Sheek-Hussein, Mahmoud

As a public health physician, the index case had considered the H1N1 situation before commencing his travels to Canada. At that time (May 8 2009), the World Health Organization (WHO) did not recommend restricting travel, although some individual national authorities were advising against non-essential travel. The advice on the various websites seemed very pragmatic: observe basic hygiene, hand-washing and cough etiquette; do not travel when ill and seek medical advice if you become ill after your return. The patient's route to Canada took him through London (34 cases reported in the UK at that time) and Toronto (15 cases in Ontario) to Saskatoon (2 cases). By the time he was due to return to the UAE from Saskatoon via Calgary, the number of cases in Canada had increased from 242 to 496 with 19 in Saskatchewan and 67 in Alberta. During his stay in Saskatoon he did not recall meeting anyone with respiratory symptoms and he was quite well on his journey back to Dubai. He was therefore not certain where and from whom he caught the infection.