Armenian healthcare officials have confirmed that three cases of H1N1, commonly known as swine flu, are registered in Armenia this week; however the final conclusion must be given by the referent laboratory of the World Health Organization (WHO) in London.

One of the carriers of the virus is an Iranian, who arrived in Armenia from Dnepropetrovsk, Ukraine. (During the past few weeks, swine flu was rapidly spreading in Ukraine, where 90 people have already died of the H1N1 virus).

Editor’s Note: Through the support and cooperation of UNICEF, and USAID through its IREX CMSPA, these articles were produced in an eight-page supplement (in Armenian) distributed in 15,000 copies through 8 newspapers in Armenia. In the coming months, it is our hope to produce a series of special editions which will similarly be distributed. The views expressed do not necessarily reflect those of USAID or UNICEF.

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Make Health Matter: A summary of conditions and concerns

It takes healthy people to make a healthy nation.

As measures are taken to make Armenia stronger politically (national elections this May and next February), economically (double-digit growth in GDP for six years), socially (with a slowly but surely emerging middle class), etc., the strength of the republic and of the hope of its future are essentially linked to the health of its citizens.

The 15 years since independence have seen dramatic changes in the availability of medical treatment for Armenians. While it is true that the privilege of privatized care is a burden too heavy for the large number of socially vulnerable, even many State-provided facilities now offer conditions and procedures previously beyond the scope of Armenian medicine.

Yet, while better care for ailments, disease, trauma, and even effective procedures for infertility have transformed treatment in Armenia, broadly speaking, the country still lacks a tradition of individual attention to preventative maintenance.

Whether neglecting to get eye exams until the world goes dark, or shunning vital vaccinations due to misguided skepticism, or choosing the convenience of infant food formula while ignoring the immediate and long-term benefits of breastfeeding, health suffers when protecting it is an afterthought.

Through this series of articles the hope of this publication and its sponsors is that public awareness will be elevated and that the outcome will be better health for those who read these pages.

These are not investigations, nor exposes – though some of the topics merit full editions on their own. Rather, the summary approach is intended as a reminder of some of the major health issues facing the nation, and a report on the newer concerns (environmentally-related disease, for example) that should be attended lest future generations suffer needlessly.

John Hughes
Director, New Times Journalism Training Center
Editor, ArmeniaNow.com internet journal

Marianna Grigoryan
Deputy Editor

Between 2001-2005, cases of respiratory illness increased from 119,550 to 161,045 – an increase of 35 percent.

But: “They managed to prevent the problem in an early stage and I am going to become a mother soon. I regret the lost years. I now advise all the women I know to fearlessly address the specialists,” she says.

An expanded immunization program for vaccine-preventable diseases of infants was launched in Armenia in the 1960s. Still today, however, it is an issue of debate between parents and doctors and a cause for UNICEF and other health advocates to work diligently for promoting vaccination. Immunization is, in fact, a national priority. 

Conscientious health officials ardently campaign for the necessity of vaccination to avoid deadly diseases. They also point out that children who are not immunized are more likely to become malnourished.

According to Armenia’s chief urologist, despite various myths about men’s health and their being the ‘strongest of the two sexes’, men are incomparably weaker than women, less adaptable, they live shorter lives, get sick more quickly, are twice as likely to get into accidents and four times as likely to commit suicide.

“Isn’t there any other road?”

No. And on this February morning, the car must stop on the main road, blocked by snow, a 50 minute walk ahead for the passengers.

Babies who are breastfed are better nourished, less susceptible to disease and generally more content. Nutritionists champion the value of breastfeeding for its physiological effect, while it is also believed that the actual act of nursing creates a mother-child bond that has psychological benefits.