No, not as in "Twas a foin rain, me lads. Aye, th' crops be needin' it".
But as in droplets so fine it is more like driving through thick mist. It has been raining all day and yesterday too. I doubt you could measure the actual precipitation without a very scientific device. I'm not very scientific. The dogs outside food dishes are empty of water.
If I wanted to live in Vancouver I'd have moved to Vancouver.
We took food up to Lena's Mother in the hospital as Lena has gone to Dnipropetrovsk for three days for work or for her doctorate dissertation, I don't know. The hospital is quarantined so Tanya could only take the food to the front desk and a nurse will take it to Lena's Mom. The circulation in her legs is so bad because of diabetes. She should have been in a year ago but... She was to the specialist in Krivii Rih yesterday and will go again Saturday. Andrei will drive, for which I am thankful.
The dogs took themselves for a walk today. They hang around the yard after a bit and don't go far. They wait for their "go back in your pen" treats. Good Ukrainian bureaucrats, they have to be bribed to do what they are supposed to do. Kuchma and Tanya are in conflict. She doesn't like muddy floors and he doesn't like getting his feet washed in the tub. Kuchma loses.
Because it was cold and damp, Tanya made chicken giblet soup for supper. Chicken hearts and minds, er gizzards are cheap and we like them, so bleah to you.
The news tonight says Ukraine will buy flu vaccine from Canada. And Russia. And Switzerland. And make it here in Ukraine. And... This I assume is for prevention of the next round scheduled for spring. the election will be over by then so maybe we won't have a flu epidemic.
They claim over 1 million sick and 90,000 in hospital (jumped from 60,000 fter the weekend) but fewer than 200 deaths. The only person acting intelligently at this point is the President who says the country is suffering more from political flu than the actual disease. The government has no money so they are demanding that the national bank finance both Euro 2012 and fighting the flu epidemic from reserves. Yushchenko has vetoed both, citing devaluation of the hrivna. No wonder the IMF have pulled out with parliament acting like idiots.
The Globe and Mail has a good report on the flu situation in Ukraine. It would be funny if it were not true.
"You catch it from imported food and clothing that isn't clean," said Mr. Barsadanyan, an 18-year-old first-year medical student. He is not worried because he heard that the Ministry of Health has "sprayed the city with the necessary products."
I don't know what you folks are doing, but I'm eating lemon, raw onion and garlic to keep my immune system healthy. In Canada it would also serve to keep other people away from you, so you would not catch germs.
Showing posts with label flu. Show all posts
Showing posts with label flu. Show all posts
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Sunday, November 8, 2009
Another Flu Casualty
My friend Sasha is dead at the age of 59 of flu untreated until too late. We got word at 3:00 pm that he had passed away at about 2:00. He had been in a coma for almost a week, on life support with little hope for recovery barring a miracle. We will try to reach his ex-wife this evening and send money from ourselves and other friends tomorrow to help with the funeral.
Sasha, Oksana, Al, Artur, June 2009
Friday, November 6, 2009
Friday's Post
No change in Sasha's condition other than his temperature is high again. Means his body is still fighting back against the infection at least. His ex-wife is frantic, wanting an international specialist to come to Ukraine to help him. We could learn a lot about forgiveness from Ukrainian Ex-wives.
I found this picture on a site for funny t-shirts. There are some good ones and also links to science t-shirts (Chris).
Not much movement today. If I was any lazier I'd need a straw to suck my thumb. Got up at noon. Made a good lunch (it was my turn to cook), washed the dishes and went for a nap.
Last night I made apple crisp. One and a half times the apples and double the crisp. Spooned out a third of it into two dishes and took my dish upstairs (Tanya was on the phone). Came down in an hour to see if she liked the dessert. Another third was gone so I guess she did.
Thursday, November 5, 2009
The Latest in the Flu Wars
Sasha is still in a coma, on life support. Three days now. His heart continues to work but the rest of his body has pretty much shut down. If I understood right, the ran his blood through a dialysis machine. His ex-wife shelled out 4500 UAH for his treatment yesterday in spite of Yulia Timoshenko's promise that all treatments would be free. Anyone who believed that...
According to MIGNews (again) there are two types of seasonal flu virus as well as A/H1N1 that they are dealing with. Death toll is up to 95 now, mostly the "usual suspects) and while Ukraine has an epidemic in terms of people becoming ill, mortality is well below epidemic levels.
Of course the politicians are loving every minute of it. Yulia Timoshenko had a huge rally in Independence Square a week or 10 days ago and since then the flu has swept Kyiv. Victor Yushchenko said " I told you guys in April to get your act together and you did nothing". Etc.
However there is more to this than we are being told officially. In an earlier blog I mentioned that they were referring to an unknown virus in Ivano-Frankivsk as "pneumonic plague".
PNEUMONIC PLAGUE has an acute course than other forms, over and is accompanied by a very high mortality rate. The incubation period of primary pneumonic plague rarely exceeds more than 1-4 days. It begins, as a rule, suddenly - with shivering, fever, headache, myalgia, weakness, nausea. The symptoms of pneumonia - cough with phlegm, chest pain, shortness of breath - usually appear on the second day of the disease. Blood spitting, growing respiratory disorders, heart failure, respiratory failure, shock are being observed. In primary pneumonic plague phlegm usually is watery or mucinous, foamy, with blood or visibly bloody.
A secondary pneumonic plague occurs as interstitial pneumonia. Phlegm is scanty and more dense and viscous than in primary pulmonary plague. It is believed that in this regard, patients are less contagious.
However if the government knows anything about it it is keeping a lid on it.
The Kyiv city state administration asked law enforcement authorities to prevent the spread of misinformation in the capital of Ukraine of leaflets about the situation with the epidemic of influenza. This is stated in the protocol instructions of city emergency anti-epidemic commission from the City Hall on November 4.
One reason for this treatment was the appearance in the city of leaflets allegedly on the letterheads of the General Directorate of Health and medical care of the Kyiv City State Administration that there are cases of pneumonic plague in the city. First Deputy Chairman of Kyiv City State Administration Irena Kilchytska informed. She stressed that the information on the identification of pneumonic plague in Kyiv does not correspond to reality.
There are more rumours going around which I will try to confirm in the next day or two. Tanya just read a news item that stated China had an outbreak of Pneumonic Plague in Qinhai in August 2009. This will get worse before it gets better.
According to MIGNews (again) there are two types of seasonal flu virus as well as A/H1N1 that they are dealing with. Death toll is up to 95 now, mostly the "usual suspects) and while Ukraine has an epidemic in terms of people becoming ill, mortality is well below epidemic levels.
Of course the politicians are loving every minute of it. Yulia Timoshenko had a huge rally in Independence Square a week or 10 days ago and since then the flu has swept Kyiv. Victor Yushchenko said " I told you guys in April to get your act together and you did nothing". Etc.
However there is more to this than we are being told officially. In an earlier blog I mentioned that they were referring to an unknown virus in Ivano-Frankivsk as "pneumonic plague".
PNEUMONIC PLAGUE has an acute course than other forms, over and is accompanied by a very high mortality rate. The incubation period of primary pneumonic plague rarely exceeds more than 1-4 days. It begins, as a rule, suddenly - with shivering, fever, headache, myalgia, weakness, nausea. The symptoms of pneumonia - cough with phlegm, chest pain, shortness of breath - usually appear on the second day of the disease. Blood spitting, growing respiratory disorders, heart failure, respiratory failure, shock are being observed. In primary pneumonic plague phlegm usually is watery or mucinous, foamy, with blood or visibly bloody.
A secondary pneumonic plague occurs as interstitial pneumonia. Phlegm is scanty and more dense and viscous than in primary pulmonary plague. It is believed that in this regard, patients are less contagious.
However if the government knows anything about it it is keeping a lid on it.
The Kyiv city state administration asked law enforcement authorities to prevent the spread of misinformation in the capital of Ukraine of leaflets about the situation with the epidemic of influenza. This is stated in the protocol instructions of city emergency anti-epidemic commission from the City Hall on November 4.
One reason for this treatment was the appearance in the city of leaflets allegedly on the letterheads of the General Directorate of Health and medical care of the Kyiv City State Administration that there are cases of pneumonic plague in the city. First Deputy Chairman of Kyiv City State Administration Irena Kilchytska informed. She stressed that the information on the identification of pneumonic plague in Kyiv does not correspond to reality.
There are more rumours going around which I will try to confirm in the next day or two. Tanya just read a news item that stated China had an outbreak of Pneumonic Plague in Qinhai in August 2009. This will get worse before it gets better.
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Getting too close to home
BBC finally noticed we have a flu epidemic here in Ukraine. Their website reports:
255,000 cases of flu and acute respiratory problems have been registered among the 46m population. 15,000 have been hospitalised. The World Health Organisation says there is no evidence to suggest that Ukraine had a bad outbreak of swine flu, but it has agreed to send a team there to help the country cope.
Since not every person is tested and many cases are reported as "Acute respiratory disease" it is hard to say how many are A/H1N1, regular seasonal flu gotten out of hand or pneumonia. People are home treating until it is too late in many cases. As in the situation below reported by MIGNews:
Swine flu was confirmed in Pereyaslav-Khmelnytsky (Kyiv Oblast). In particular, the chief sanitary doctor of the Pereyaslav-Khmelnitsky district Ivan Bryl said that the virology laboratory of the regional sanitary and epidemiological station gave a positive result for the virus H1N1.
"The sick man - a man at the age of 59 in very grave condition. He has been in hospital with medical ventilation apparatus from this Sunday. The man fell ill on October 19. He had fever up to 38 degrees but did not go to hospital. On 24 October, his temperature rose to 40 degrees. The patient asked medical care only on October 27, and on October 30 he was transferred to intensive care department ".
The doctor also said that relatives and friends of ill person are healthy. "We tested those who contacted the patient. His family, wife and mother are healthy. His friends and acquaintances are also healthy" - he said.
The doctor has no information, where a man could become infected with swine influenza. According to him, the patient is a native of Pereyaslav-Khmelnitsky district, and has no recent contacts with the residents of Western Ukraine.
The report did not include that he was a heavy smoker and thus at extreme risk for exactly what happened.
This is our good friend Sasha, whom I have known for over 14 years. He is one of the best interpreters I ever worked with, who spoke fluent "cow" and was familiar with Canadian livestock production, having been several times to Canada, including Agribition back in the late 1990's. We got a phone call from another friend notifying us just before I found it on the web. He is "stabilized" according to latest reports from our friends in P-K.
All we can do now is pray and hope for the best.
255,000 cases of flu and acute respiratory problems have been registered among the 46m population. 15,000 have been hospitalised. The World Health Organisation says there is no evidence to suggest that Ukraine had a bad outbreak of swine flu, but it has agreed to send a team there to help the country cope.
Since not every person is tested and many cases are reported as "Acute respiratory disease" it is hard to say how many are A/H1N1, regular seasonal flu gotten out of hand or pneumonia. People are home treating until it is too late in many cases. As in the situation below reported by MIGNews:
Swine flu was confirmed in Pereyaslav-Khmelnytsky (Kyiv Oblast). In particular, the chief sanitary doctor of the Pereyaslav-Khmelnitsky district Ivan Bryl said that the virology laboratory of the regional sanitary and epidemiological station gave a positive result for the virus H1N1.
"The sick man - a man at the age of 59 in very grave condition. He has been in hospital with medical ventilation apparatus from this Sunday. The man fell ill on October 19. He had fever up to 38 degrees but did not go to hospital. On 24 October, his temperature rose to 40 degrees. The patient asked medical care only on October 27, and on October 30 he was transferred to intensive care department ".
The doctor also said that relatives and friends of ill person are healthy. "We tested those who contacted the patient. His family, wife and mother are healthy. His friends and acquaintances are also healthy" - he said.
The doctor has no information, where a man could become infected with swine influenza. According to him, the patient is a native of Pereyaslav-Khmelnitsky district, and has no recent contacts with the residents of Western Ukraine.
The report did not include that he was a heavy smoker and thus at extreme risk for exactly what happened.
This is our good friend Sasha, whom I have known for over 14 years. He is one of the best interpreters I ever worked with, who spoke fluent "cow" and was familiar with Canadian livestock production, having been several times to Canada, including Agribition back in the late 1990's. We got a phone call from another friend notifying us just before I found it on the web. He is "stabilized" according to latest reports from our friends in P-K.
All we can do now is pray and hope for the best.
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Snow use complaining
It has snowed all day today. Tiny flakes drifting down. The white contrasts with the green leaves still on the apple trees and covers the remaining fall flowers. It is only for a few days and then temperatures will return to the mid-teens if the forecast is right. When that happens, Tanya says she will put her roses to bed for the winter by cutting the stems short and covering them with dirt. The climbing roses, she will wrap with plastic filled with leaves.
We jacked the heat to 4, in spite of news that gas prices will double in 2020 for homes using more than 2500 cu meters in 2009. We will have used about 3500 so we are now looking at about 1500 UAH ($200 CAD)/1000 cu meters instead of 750 UAH ($100 CAD). Still pretty cheap in my books as Europe is paying much more, I think.
According to MIGNews the there is no pandemic of A/H1N1 in Ukraine, though it has been identified in some cases including three deaths. It is just "seasonal flu and acute respiratory disease" which is very serious in Western Ukraine and has already resulted in the deaths of over 70 people.
Of course, I am not sure about MIGNews as it reads more like the National Enquirer and the journalisitic style may be one reason there are an increasing number of laws restricting "freedom" of the press. A good school of journalism would be in order for people who write such as this article or this one.
Tanya was talking to Masha today. Masha said she had a new game to teach her. One person is the cat and one is the dog and they have to chase each other around the house. Tanya asked "Your parents don't want to do this?" "No". "Tell them they are lazy". "Oh, Babushka, that would not be good at all to say they are lazy. Papa is sick (back) and Mama is sick (flu)".
Tanya pretended she was going to punch me today. I said "What have I done?" "If I knew, I would probably kill you".
We jacked the heat to 4, in spite of news that gas prices will double in 2020 for homes using more than 2500 cu meters in 2009. We will have used about 3500 so we are now looking at about 1500 UAH ($200 CAD)/1000 cu meters instead of 750 UAH ($100 CAD). Still pretty cheap in my books as Europe is paying much more, I think.
According to MIGNews the there is no pandemic of A/H1N1 in Ukraine, though it has been identified in some cases including three deaths. It is just "seasonal flu and acute respiratory disease" which is very serious in Western Ukraine and has already resulted in the deaths of over 70 people.
Of course, I am not sure about MIGNews as it reads more like the National Enquirer and the journalisitic style may be one reason there are an increasing number of laws restricting "freedom" of the press. A good school of journalism would be in order for people who write such as this article or this one.
Tanya was talking to Masha today. Masha said she had a new game to teach her. One person is the cat and one is the dog and they have to chase each other around the house. Tanya asked "Your parents don't want to do this?" "No". "Tell them they are lazy". "Oh, Babushka, that would not be good at all to say they are lazy. Papa is sick (back) and Mama is sick (flu)".
Tanya pretended she was going to punch me today. I said "What have I done?" "If I knew, I would probably kill you".
Sunday, November 1, 2009
And an uncontrollable urge to sleep in the mud
CLINICAL SIGNS OF A/H1N1 INFLUENZA (SWINE FLU) ARE: headache, muscle aches, sore throat, fever, cough, runny nose, nasal stuffiness, in some cases - vomit and diarrhea.
TV news said death toll is now 58 people. They are flying in a plane load of Tamiflu from Switzerland into Kyiv tonight.
Yesterday Lena and Roman stopped in for a visit. Lena looked and felt like death warmed over. I asked if she had the flu and Roman and I simultaneously went "oink oink". If looks could kill...
Always at the beginning of winter, I am cold until I get aclimatized. These past few days have been no exception. Along with a headache and generally bleah feeling. Blood pressure up and down like a toilet seat at a party. I slept all afternoon. Tanya brewed some strong black tea and that helped the blood pressure and headache. Never quit coffee cold turkey.
TV news said death toll is now 58 people. They are flying in a plane load of Tamiflu from Switzerland into Kyiv tonight.
Yesterday Lena and Roman stopped in for a visit. Lena looked and felt like death warmed over. I asked if she had the flu and Roman and I simultaneously went "oink oink". If looks could kill...
Always at the beginning of winter, I am cold until I get aclimatized. These past few days have been no exception. Along with a headache and generally bleah feeling. Blood pressure up and down like a toilet seat at a party. I slept all afternoon. Tanya brewed some strong black tea and that helped the blood pressure and headache. Never quit coffee cold turkey.
Saturday, October 31, 2009
California (Swine) Flu in Ukraine
The news, these last three days, has been full of stories about a flu epidemic in Ukraine that so far has killed more than 30 people, mostly in Western Ukraine. BBC has reported nothing yet but I expect a story on Monday. Tanya has been following it on TV news and also on www.mail.ru while I have been following MIGnews.com.ua.
According to MIG, H1N1 which they refer to as California flu has been confirmed in 11 cases in hospital of 30+ tested and in one death (of 1 tested) however there is a very fast acting unknown virus also at work. In Ternopil Oblast some 10,000 people have taken ill and 7 died from the unidentified virus and in Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast they are referring to the virus as "pneumonic plague".
Of course, it is silly season on top of it, with presidential elections in January and campaigning "officially" starting tomorrow. All three major contenders are shouting and waving their arms trying to look and sound impressive, concerned and in charge. Yulia Timoshenko as Prime Minister is best situated to take advantage of the situation.
The government has decided to impose quarantine in nine regions of Ukraine, namely: in Transcarpathia, Khmelnitsky, Rivne, Chernivtsi, Volyn, Vinnitsa, Lviv, Ivano-Frankivsk and Ternopil Regions. The movement of people between the regions and abroad –may be under special control - it may be limited due to the epidemiological situation, Yulia Tymoshenko warned.
She has also declared three weeks of holidays for ALL educational institutes AND a ban on public events. Yushchenko was scheduled to kick off his campaign tomorrow with a rally in St Sofia Square. That is off. Yulia was scheduled to campaign in Western Ukraine. She is still going as she needs to keep on top of the situation.
She has also put ALL pharmacies under state control, ordered each to have a supply of meds and masks and threatened licence cancellation for anything that looks like price gouging. They appear to be relying on the drug Tamiflu for control of H1N1. Ukraine has been in contact with India regading supply of drugs, according to the TV news.
Anyhow we are not going anywhere for three weeks, except to the store for groceries.
According to MIG, H1N1 which they refer to as California flu has been confirmed in 11 cases in hospital of 30+ tested and in one death (of 1 tested) however there is a very fast acting unknown virus also at work. In Ternopil Oblast some 10,000 people have taken ill and 7 died from the unidentified virus and in Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast they are referring to the virus as "pneumonic plague".
Of course, it is silly season on top of it, with presidential elections in January and campaigning "officially" starting tomorrow. All three major contenders are shouting and waving their arms trying to look and sound impressive, concerned and in charge. Yulia Timoshenko as Prime Minister is best situated to take advantage of the situation.
The government has decided to impose quarantine in nine regions of Ukraine, namely: in Transcarpathia, Khmelnitsky, Rivne, Chernivtsi, Volyn, Vinnitsa, Lviv, Ivano-Frankivsk and Ternopil Regions. The movement of people between the regions and abroad –may be under special control - it may be limited due to the epidemiological situation, Yulia Tymoshenko warned.
She has also declared three weeks of holidays for ALL educational institutes AND a ban on public events. Yushchenko was scheduled to kick off his campaign tomorrow with a rally in St Sofia Square. That is off. Yulia was scheduled to campaign in Western Ukraine. She is still going as she needs to keep on top of the situation.
She has also put ALL pharmacies under state control, ordered each to have a supply of meds and masks and threatened licence cancellation for anything that looks like price gouging. They appear to be relying on the drug Tamiflu for control of H1N1. Ukraine has been in contact with India regading supply of drugs, according to the TV news.
Anyhow we are not going anywhere for three weeks, except to the store for groceries.
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