ABSTRACT
In April 2009, Hanoi’s World Health Organization (WHO) spokesperson congratulated Vietnamese authorities on their formidable mobilization against the new H1N1 epidemic, observing that, ‘Given previous experiences dealing with both avian influenza and SARS, Vietnam already has many surveillance and early detection mechanisms in place’. 1 Vietnam had announced its H1N1 control measures immediately after the WHO raised its pandemic alert level; it instituted the surveillance of travellers disembarking in its international airports, the isolation of sick individuals, the notification of hospitals and laboratories to be on alert, and the creation of a hotline offering information about the new virus.
