Swine flu hits eastern Mutare

from Nehanda Radio

Zimbabwean Health Minister Henry Madzorera confirmed Thursday that the H1N1 influenza virus responsible for the so-called swine flu pandemic has reached the country, telling a news conference in Harare that five cases have been confirmed at a private primary school in Mutare, capital of eastern Manicaland Province.Meanwhile, Zimbabweans are reliving the health care crisis of late 2008 though thankfully this time around there is no surging cholera epidemic claiming lives as hospital wards close.

Yet there is no end in sight to the latest strike by resident doctors in the main state hospitals in Harare and Bulawayo, who were joined this week by some nurses while other nurses are in go-slow mode. Many sick people are being turned away without medical assistance.