God fucking hilarious NTU hospital… 2 hours in ER, meeting the “Doc” being a first grader most likely. Symptoms repeated to 3 people. Waiting in ER pisses me of and I refuse the test not wanting to stay another zillion hours ( NTU always takes more patients than it is possible admitting. ) I go home. Got some brown bottle and another 5 bags of whatever. Asking for an employer attest not being advised to work having fever, they looked at me as it was raining in Koln. And having to pay double if it must be in English… I already had the lowest esteem for TW hospitals and it’s ridiculous operating guidelines, and I am really wondering if this country can cope with such a thing as H1N1. “Triage” for sure is not effective at ER.
Hope you’re feeling better soon, anyway.
I will- and thanks all. As things have not worsen since Friday, I am 100% sure it is a common flu.
Did not had a flu for almost 3 years here, thus this one feels draining all remaining force out of my body.
At the end, I walked out of NTU, they could keep their other tests where the sun never shines.
Guess being a bit :fume: is related to being sick :bluemad:
I will- and thanks all. As things have not worsen since Friday, I am 100% sure it is a common flu.
Did not had a flu for almost 3 years here, thus this one feels draining all remaining force out of my body.
At the end, I walked out of NTU, they could keep their other tests where the sun never shines.
Guess being a bit :fume: is related to being sick :bluemad:[/quote]
Well, from what I’ve read, it sounds like swine flu usually feels pretty much like the regular flu, so you never know. If I were you, I’d be hoping that I had it, since it sounds like you’re getting better. Then you’d be done with it and immune, so you could just ignore all the hype.
Either way, hope you fell better soon!
[quote=“ceevee369”]Friday noon sore throats , slight pain in legs & muscles. Went home and tayed in bed all afternoon. Slight fever.
Saturday morning- feel like a wreck even after 12 hrs of deep sleep - dizzy, sore throat became less, slight dry caughing - & slight fever in the afternoon.
Stayed in bed almost all day - went out for a diner in Sogo - got the ice cold chills as never before.[/quote]
That sounds like what I had. After almost 3 weeks I think I am back to normal now.
I went to the doctor because I thought it might be (as it might really have been) H1N1. After listening to the symptoms he took my temperature. “No, you don’t have H1N1 because you don’t have a high temperature.” No other tests/examination. :loco: 
Those cold chills, the body ache, and for me the stomach pain were the worst. I found that drinking a lot of water (Liters per day) helped the most. YMMV.
I haven’t been sick in years.
I will- and thanks all. As things have not worsen since Friday, I am 100% sure it is a common flu.
Did not had a flu for almost 3 years here, thus this one feels draining all remaining force out of my body.
At the end, I walked out of NTU, they could keep their other tests where the sun never shines.
Guess being a bit :fume: is related to being sick :bluemad:[/quote]
As you said, Ceeve, most hospitals are already streched as it is. Taita is teh worse in thsi sense, as their services are so sought after “since it is the best”. So far, they have had 4 instances of H1N1 contagion among medical staff, mostly due to having the heaviest traffic.
Plus, I don’t think any hospital right now would be able to check each case carefully, giving the growing panic induuced lines in the ER:
[quote]Amid a widening epidemic that has yet to reach fever pitch, emergency rooms (ER) across the island have reported high volumes of residents going in for A(H1N1) evaluations, with many clamoring for Tamiflu and rapid influenza diagnostic tests, said local media. According to ER doctors, the rapid test has fast become the most sought-after medical procedure.
For every 100 people seen, approximately 15 would ask for the rapid test, doctors told the United Evening News.
Chang Wen-han, the chief of emergency services at Mackay Memorial Hospital, asserted that some residents seem to be panicking over the threat of the novel virus, even bringing families and friends to ER facilities to get diagnosed.
A percentage of these people panic, declaring they had contracted the disease and need to be instantly placed on a course of Tamiflu or will otherwise die from a severe infection, Chang noted.
…
In a recent survey conducted by 1111 Job Bank, 72 percent of the workforce expressed fear of the novel A(H1N1)virus.
Those polled on average rated the government’s effort in epidemic control with a measly 46 out of a full score of 100.
Thirty five percent of professionals predicted that it will be at least six to 12 months before the epidemic is contained, said the report.
[/quote]
http://www.chinapost.com.tw/taiwan/national/national-news/2009/09/04/223262/ERs-swamped.htm
Now, I’d wish they would have such passion for washing their hands after digging for gold…
[quote=“elektronisk”][quote=“ceevee369”]Friday noon sore throats , slight pain in legs & muscles. Went home and tayed in bed all afternoon. Slight fever.
Saturday morning- feel like a wreck even after 12 hrs of deep sleep - dizzy, sore throat became less, slight dry caughing - & slight fever in the afternoon.
Stayed in bed almost all day - went out for a diner in Sogo - got the ice cold chills as never before.[/quote]
That sounds like what I had. After almost 3 weeks I think I am back to normal now.
I went to the doctor because I thought it might be (as it might really have been) H1N1. After listening to the symptoms he took my temperature. “No, you don’t have H1N1 because you don’t have a high temperature.” No other tests/examination. :loco:
Those cold chills, the body ache, and for me the stomach pain were the worst. I found that drinking a lot of water (Liters per day) helped the most. YMMV.
I haven’t been sick in years.[/quote]
That’s what I’ve got. Legs particularly aching, want to sleep all the time. I usually sleep 5-6 hours a night; now it’s 9 or 10. I also haven’t been sick in a year or two.
My doctor dad’s advice, given 30 years ago when you could actually still get healthcare in a Brit hospital, is the one I still adhere to – Son, unless you’re unconscious and getting taken there in an ambulance, DO NOT go to a hospital if you value your health.
That works even better here. Bedrest, lots of fluids. Analgesics or anti-pyretics if you REALLY have to. That’s how you treat flu.
Well, as all the received medicine in NTU (7 pills and a brown sugar sirop) did not improve things a lot - aside reducing fever-
I guess a rapid test will be required this afternoon aside some other exclusion tests.
Dizziness is like floating on codeine 24 % hours per day. Typing this text becomes blurry.
Why I post this? just in case it would be H1, it might help others to identify specifics not so obviously found.
What were the first symptoms you noticed, just so, like, we can all panic?
Doctor Abel (Ira Wheeler): You’ve had some dizzy spells. What about ringing and buzzing? Have you, uh, noticed any of that?
Mickey Sachs (Woody Allen): Yes. Now-now that you mention it, uh, I-I-I have, uh, buzzing and also ringing. Ringing and buzzing. I, uh, am I going deaf or something?
Doctor: And it’s just in one ear?
Mickey: Yes. Is it-is it, uh, healthier to have ringing in both ears?
[quote=“ceevee369”]Well, as all the received medicine in NTU (7 pills and a brown sugar sirop) did not improve things a lot - aside reducing fever-
I guess a rapid test will be required this afternoon aside some other exclusion tests.
Dizziness is like floating on codeine 24 % hours per day. Typing this text becomes blurry.
Why I post this? just in case it would be H1, it might help others to identify specifics not so obviously found.[/quote]
Supposedly, they just opened a specific clinic for suspicious flu cases in Taida, Veterans Hospital, and others.
Hope your experience today is better than last time. Take care.
I don’t get your point. It is not about the symptoms , either being it The flu, or not…
Panic ? For what? Taiwan’s finest doctors swear by Tamiflu in case of. The don’t need to check our throat, merely taking bloodpressure . Only respondingon a few verbal questions is required. And we all got a cocktail of whatever med’s - no questions asked. Fuck, after visiting this afternoon’s " priority care center" I am assured that Taiwan is far from developped when it comes to health. Sayanora.
I don’t get your point. [/quote]
It was just a lame joke, about how people tend to overreact.
I don’t get your point. [/quote]
It was just a lame joke, about how people tend to overreact.[/quote]
People do overreact. My whole family is in various stages of getting over colds or flus. All of us have tested negative for H1N1, but boy has there a hue and a cry when it was discovered that we had the sniffles! My wife said the hospital ER was full of students in their uniforms, forced to go and get tested when they had cold symptoms at school.
Awareness here of the difference between a cold and a serious flu seems pretty low.
But herein lies the crux of the issue. We live in a nation of hypochondriacs. So every time you get a headache, sore throat, sniffles, etc. etc. first reaction is; is this the big one? How will these hospitals cope in 2 months time when the latest rhino virus comes along and every one confuses a winter cold with the flu? A full blown cold is still unpleasant enough to have you fear for the worst. There could be literally hundreds of thousands of people flooding into emergency rooms on any given day. HR emails are already telling people with initial cold-like symptoms to stay home and monitor themselves. That’s cold-like symptoms which could only be hay fever or a bad hangover. Could be a fun coupla months.
How about the pretty nurses? Don’t they make it a little more pleasurable being in the hospital ? Gosh, I wish the hospitals here could hire more male nurses (rarity in Taiwan). I’m really the one who needs to say sayonara and go back home. In case I get hospitalized, I can at least request a good male nurse to give me some massages on my back.
Tomas wrote:
Just following MOE’s directives, that’s all…
EDIT:
BTW, just read they confirmed an H1N1 case in the Deaflympics: a Japanese soccer player. Hope it does not upset the proceedings too much.
Nope, those first batches go to Latin America:
[quote]BEIJING — The answer may be at hand to a crucial question about vaccination for the advancing swine flu — one shot or two? Chinese officials approved a vaccine Thursday that they say prevents the new flu in a single dose.
If they’re right, it would be good news. Many health researchers fear it will take two shots to protect people, vastly complicating efforts to stem the spread of the illness.
…
“From what I’ve seen and heard of the data, it looks encouraging,” Fauci said of the clinical trials of Sinovac vaccine. “This is very good news. Let’s hope the material that we’re using has similar results.”
…
However, James McGlothlin, a member of Purdue University’s pandemic planning committee, was cautious about the Chinese report.
“They’ve got some very good scientists over there, but anything that sounds too good to be true ought to be scrutinized,” he said in a telephone interview.
“I’d like to look at some of the clinical trials,” that led to the one-dose conclusion, he said. “In China, the rules are a little bit different in terms of human subjects,” and it’s not clear what safety factors were in place, he said.
…
Though China is a worldwide manufacturing center for pharmaceuticals, suppliers have been known to substitute cheaper and sometimes lethal ingredients. Tainted cough syrup was linked to several deaths in Central America and blood thinners made with contaminated products are suspected in dozens of deaths in the U.S. in recent years.
Last week, Mexico’s health secretary, Jose Angel Cordova, said Mexico is considering buying vaccines from China, which would be more than 40 percent cheaper than other vaccines being offered to the government. But Mexico would want a guarantee that China’s vaccine is safe and effective, he said.
The World Health Organization said information provided by Sinovac showed that in studies, the vaccines were tested in three formulations of 15 micrograms per dose, and all gave antibody responses that satisfied regulatory criteria. That vaccine dose is the same amount the U.S. government is testing.
“We have no reason to doubt what Sinovac is reporting,” said Melinda Henry, a WHO spokeswoman in Geneva. “Certainly if one dose proves sufficient to produce the desired immune response, this would be very encouraging in terms of augmenting the global supply of vaccine in the near future.”
[/quote]
From Associated Press, via http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,545840,00.html
As to distribution of such vaccine, hope Taiwan takes the same approach as Hong Kong:
[quote]Demand for the vaccine is potentially vast in China. The country’s work force plays a critical role in world manufacturing, and the global economy could be affected if large numbers of Chinese become ill. Some scientists also fear that if H1N1 were to spread in China’s huge population, chances would increase that it could mix with other viruses such as avian influenza and become more deadly.
Mao Qunan, a spokesman for China’s Ministry of Health, said experts are discussing how to allocate the vaccine and which groups of people should have priority for immunization, which he said should “start as soon as possible.” He said Beijing as yet has no specific plans about providing vaccine outside China, but that “we will do our best” to help other developing countries.
Liu Peicheng, a spokesman for Sinovac, said specific plans for the distribution and use of its vaccine would be decided by the government. “The priority is to meet the domestic demand. The surplus will be provided to other countries,” he said. Sinovac is supposed to supply five million doses of the vaccine by Oct. 1, and annual capacity would be 20 million to 30 million doses, the company said.
Dr Lo Wing Lok, an infectious disease specialist and adviser to the Hong Kong government said China may not face technical problems manufacturing the vaccine but there were concerns about quality control.
“There has been a lot of problem in terms of pharmaceutical regulation in mainland China… and because of that the international scientific community is keeping a close watch on developments,” he told Al Jazeera.
“It is important that the tests can be independently verified outside China and comes with sufficient quality assurance in the manufacturing process in line with international standards before the vaccine can be exported.”
Stockpiling vaccines is China’s latest move in its approach to contain the spread of the flu in a country of 1.3 billion people with relatively limited medical resources.
The health ministry says nearly 4,000 cases of H1N1 flu have been confirmed on the mainland - none of which were fatal.
[/quote]
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB125198466331383281.html
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/asia-pacific/2009/09/2009934585472715.html