Swine Flu vaccines arrive in Ghana today

Vaccines for the H1N1 Influenza Type A which claimed the lives of 4 students in the Ashanti Region will finally arrive in the country today.

The Head of Surveillance at the Ghana Health Service, Dr Asiedu Bekoe revealed this in a radio interview, Wednesday morning.

The vaccines were expected to arrive over the weekend, but the Ministry in a press statement said suppliers had indicated that there will be a slight delay in the delivery.

“The Ministry of Health with the support of the World Health Organisation, WHO, has procured vaccines and have taken steps to airlift them to Ghana for urgent use." the statement read.

Dr. Bekoe, however, disclosed that  “As far as we are concerned, it is supposed to come today [Wednesday], so hopefully they will get it as early as possible. WHO and the Ministry are going to get it cleared, so we give it to the students as early as possible. “


The disease has been detected in at least a dozen students of Kumasi Academy in the Ashanti Region, where four students are suspected to have died from it.

The school’s students and staff were administered some other antiviral agents, and the school was also fumigated, following the detection of the swine flu.

Aside from the suspected outbreak of swine flu at Kumasi Academy, a death from meningitis was recorded at the Koforidua Secondary Technical School in the Eastern Region.
Other meningitis deaths were recorded at the Damango Senior High School in the Northern Region and the Bawku Secondary Technical and Tempane SHS both in the Upper East Region.