Doctors say T&T not equipped to deal with Swine Flu

The Medical Practitioners Association of Trinidad and Tobago (MPATT) issued a media release Thursday saying the country's health system is not equipped to deal with the second wave of swine flu.

MPATT slammed the government for what it said is a failure to increase institutional capacity, which it said will make it incapable of coping with the demands of a severe swine-flu outbreak.

"For nearly a decade, MPATT has been repeatedly pointing out that our public health care infrastructure has been deteriorating and continues to do so more rapidly now," MPATT said.

"Our public institutions do not have the capacity to manage the basic demands required of our population, and has been struggling to cope with the demand of only the urgent and emergency cases," the statement said.

The concerns coincided with reports of another possible Swine Flu death at the San Fernando General Hospital. The Trinidad Express reported Friday that a Penal man died Thursday at the from suspected Swine Flu but ministry of health officials have not confirmed that.

The paper said the man spent three days in the hospital's Intensive Care Unit (ICU) with a severe respiratory illness and died Thursday morning. It cited unnamed hospital personnel as confirming that the man was a H1N1 virus victim.