GUYANA has confirmed its 27th H1N1 case, placing 69 per cent of those tested positive as coming from the Public Sector and 31 per cent from the Private Sector.

A Ministry of Health official, who made the disclosure, said the World Health Organisation (WHO) has started distribution of the vaccines and this country expects its quota by January 15.

Upon its receipt, priority groups will be vaccinated first and they include children under five years of age, pregnant women, persons suffering from asthma and health workers.

Another effort aimed at building capacity to deal with H1N1, locally, is the acquisition of new equipment, costing some $8M, which has been installed at the National Public Health Reference Laboratory (NPHRL).

Specialists from the Centre for Disease Control (CDC) in Atlanta, United States, will be in Guyana from January 3, to conduct the training so capacity of four local technicians will be bolstered.

Director of NPHRL, Dr Colin Roach, said some work is still to be done before the equipment is fully operational and then tests will be conducted here, eliminating the need to send specimens to Trinidad and Tobago.

Meanwhile, the public has been advised to continue practising good hygiene, as health workers continue the collaborative effort to minimise transmission of H1N1.