JAEN, NUEVA ECIJA, Philippines—Fore the first time, the farming village of Hilera in Jaen, Nueva Ecija, was in the news. Its people, however, would rather forget the life-changing experience.

Hilera, about 100 kilometers from Metro Manila, became the biggest victim of the influenza A(H1N1) virus. The Department of Health (DOH) declared the first community-level outbreak in this village of 1,622 people early this month when at least 11 children were reported to have tested positive for the virus.

The earliest sign that the virus had arrived was when 22 of the 29 Grade 6 students of the Hilera Elementary School felt feverish on June 4. The following day, several pupils in other grade levels suffered from flu-like symptoms.

On June 9, when the pupils recovered, classes at the HES resumed. But a DOH advisory came, informing school officials that 10 of the pupils whose throat swabs were tested were found positive for the A(H1N1) virus. Classes were suspended for 10 days, starting June 11.

From 11 (including a 4-year-old child), the number of confirmed A(H1N1) cases went up to 19.

Outsiders seldom go to Hilera, 6 km from the town proper, but as soon as the virus emerged in the village, health personnel and government officials focused their attention on the community amid rice fields.

Recovering

As people afflicted with the virus have started recovering, DOH personnel still have to determine how it arrived in Hilera.

The HES compound became the command post of the department in battling the virus. Doctors, nurses and rural health workers used the empty classrooms to attend to residents worried about their health.

No near-death cases, though, were reported. The virus attack waned and its victims recovered. The residents never panicked.

People who came face to face with the virus say dealing with A(H1N1) was not a big discomfort. Three to four days of rest and the intake of prescription drugs and vitamins were all they needed to overcome the affliction.

“Hindi naman kami natakot sa nangyaring sakit. Hindi naman nasalanta ang aming katawan. Wala namang namatay sa naapektuhan, iyong virus lang ang namatay (We never feared the ailment. Nothing serious happened. Nobody succumbed, only the virus died),” one resident says.

But the residents agree that they would have to bear with the stigma and the psychological pain on children diagnosed with A(H1N1).

“Outsiders shied away from visiting Hilera and residents were regarded as carriers of the virus,” says Ruperto Castro, HES principal. “This is very painful to the residents.”

He says the students would also need time to heal from the experience.

Human face

When Health Secretary Francisco Duque III visited Jaen on June 17, the virus was given a human face when two victims were identified—with consent from their parents.

Arnel Ferrer and Bernadette Paynor, both Grade 6 pupils at the HES, narrated their bout with the virus to Duque. They said they had fever, felt dizzy and vomited. They assured the secretary that they were feeling better and eager to return to school.

Duque, a doctor, examined their throats briefly and said they had fully recovered.

Hilera officials and residents say they will bear the ignominy of being the first and only place in the country where a community-level outbreak of the A(H1N1) was detected.

“Our village will be mentioned again and again as the problem [regarding] this virus [persists],” says Julita Hermosa, Hilera barangay chair.

Feared

They say they were feared and discriminated, while others feel they are carriers of the virus. They also note that only few officials visited them.

They credit Jaen Mayor Santiago Austria for giving attention to the village amid the crisis, and municipal health officer Milgrace Santos and other personnel of the DOH in Central Luzon for visiting every house in the village to look for people manifesting flu-like symptoms.

Austria says not only Hilera but the whole town of Jaen suffered from the impact of the virus.

“Kinatakutan ng mga taga-ibang lugar ang bayan namin. Ang sabi nila ay baka tagapagdala raw kami ng virus (Our town was feared by outsiders. They were saying that it’s possible that we are carriers of the virus),” he says.

But in the face of the crisis, he gave town mates his assurance of vigilance in fighting A(H1N1): “Let it be. It will soon pass away. Let’s just do what health officials say in order not to catch the virus.”