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What would happen if ...? |
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Saturday, April 19 2008 |
By BECKY HAND
Community editor
“What would happen if…?” was the question asked over and over at the Online Panflu 2008 Tabletop exercise on Monday. Local emergency workers met to join with others around the state via teleconferencing for this Purdue Homeland Security Institute program.
The premise was a flu outbreak that had reached pandemic levels. This means a worldwide epidemic. What would be the local response to it? This scenario was set up as a test for the local health department and various other emergency personnel, to see how ready they are for this situation and allow them to see what aspects of their programs could use some tweaking.
Glenn A. Druhot, the Public Health Coordinator for Public Health Preparedness and Emergency Response for Whitley County, led the discussion locally in the Government building in Columbia City. Other local officials present were: Scott Wagner, Health Dept.; Catherine Broxon-Ball of the Whitley County EMA/DHS; Brian Anspach, Police Dept.; Mark Hodges, Whitley County Sheriff; Sandy Kohut, Whitley County Community Schools nurse; Barbara Frye, RN Health Services Coordinator for Passages; Tom LaRue, Fire Chief; and Lynn Witt, Jan Labas and Peggy Creek from the American Red Cross.
The discussion was an attempt to define the roles and responsibilities of the various branches of local government, health care agencies, and others who would be called on in a flu pandemic situation, setting in place policies and procedures to follow should this occur. Receipt, storage, security, distribution and dispensing of needed supplies and vaccines were discussed. Tough questions were raised: If the vaccine is limited, who should get it first?
The group looked at the existing plans and noted where issues still need to be addressed, such as medical surge capacity, alternate care sites should hospitals become filled and home care in the case of quarantine.
According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), “An influenza pandemic occurs when a new influenza A virus emerges for which there is little or no immunity in the human population, begins to cause serious illness, and then spreads easily from person to person worldwide.”
While the recent bird flu scare was deadly, with a 63 percent mortality rate, it did not become pandemic because it was not readily transmitted from human to human. Total deaths attributed to this flu as of March 11, 2008 are 235. “These were in countries where humans practically live with their birds,” said Druhot, but he stressed, “There are more unknowns about this than knowns,” referring to pandemic flu.
It has happened before, 1918 being the last time a flu outbreak reached the level of pandemic. Twenty million people died, but nothing of that magnitude has happened since.
If a flu pandemic should develop, our local agencies and health care workers are getting ready, and may in the next few months hold a drill to give workers a more tangible sense of what may be required of them. And then they can answer the question, “What would happen if …?” |
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Last Updated ( Monday, April 21 2008 )
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