The Health Ministry has taken drastic measures to strengthen health checks and the inspections of imported goods at border gates, with the aim of preventing bird flu viruses from entering the country.

Tran Dac Phu, director of the ministry’s Preventive Medicine Department, said that since the beginning of this year, nine teams have been established to assist northern border provinces in the fight against the H7N9 and H5N1 strains of avian flu.

They have also supervised localities carrying out poultry smuggling investigations.

Phu confirmed that no avian flu H7N9 case has been reported so far this year in either humans or poultry. However, the country has been facing a very high risk due to the sudden increase in H7N9 cases in neighbouring China, he added.

Therefore, the ministry has intensified inspections 24/7 by using infra-red body temperature measuring machines at border gates as around 130,000 Chinese enter Vietnam each month. Unusually high temperatures can be a symptom of avian flu.

In the time to come, the health sector will continue strengthening quarantine work at border gates, and improving the capacity of doctors to avoid fatalities.-VNA