Medical Expert Says Swine Flu Could Devastate Indigenous Populations

The author of a study to be published in the next issue of the medical journal Lancet said swine flu could devastate indigenous populations around the world due to their sensitivity to infectious disease. Dr. Michael Gracey, a medical expert and adviser to Unity of First People of Australia, an aboriginal non-profit organization, suggests that the world's almost 400 million indigenous peoples — including about 1.2 million in Canada — are particularly at risk for contracting swine flu because they often live in remote, impoverished communities with limited access to medical infrastructure.

First Nations communities in Manitoba and northern Ontario have already been hit by the highly communicable H1N1 virus. Despite comprising just 10 per cent of the population in Manitoba, natives make up about a third of the 685 swine flu cases in that province.

The spread of the virus on reserves prompted aboriginal leaders around Manitoba to declare states of emergency last week to help free funds for federal assistance. The expert said the lack of hospitals and medical workers in isolated aboriginal communities means that while they are often introduced to viruses later than the rest of the population, the effects can be quick and punishing.

Excerpted from VancouverSun.com.