Middlesex-London Health Unit announced today three new cases of the new H1N1 influenza virus have been identified in the local region.
As a result, Western health officials are recommending continued vigilance in terms of basic hygiene and precautionary awareness.
“Our recommendation to the Western community is the same as it has been since this outbreak started. Paying attention to washing hands is critical to blocking transmission, as is covering the mouth when coughing or sneezing as the virus commonly travels in droplets expelled by speaking, sneezing or coughing,” says Shelagh Bantock, Western’s Director of Health Services.
“I encourage everyone to continue watching the Western website and the H1N1 Flu Virus micro-website for news and updates from the Middlesex-London Health Unit.”
To-date, four cases of the new human swine flu virus have been identified in Middlesex-London.
The three cases reported on Thursday, May 28 include an elementary school student, a 20-year old and a 66-year old.
According to the health unit, while the first reported case in Middlesex-London was a person who traveled to Mexico, none of the recent cases have a history of travel to the country. There is evidence that the virus is circulating in our community to some extent, as is occurring in many other jurisdictions.
The Health Unit also released a guide for “Caring for People with Influenza at Home” today and it now posted on the H1N1 Flu Virus micro-website.
The website can be found at https://communications.uwo.ca/influenza-microsite/