Osterholm Changes Pandemic Flu Emphasis -

[Farmer]

Re: Osterholm Changes Pandemic Flu Emphasis -

"How many red flags must be run up the flagpole to motivate people toward preparation?"

My efforts to communicate/educate about pandemic preparedness among family and friends continue to frustrate me no matter how many big hurricanes seem to land.

I really think: people are in denial; people are too busy with daily activities; people do not feel a sense of urgency to deal with it; people are overwhelmed by the potential scope of a severe pandemic, they cannot imagine it; and / or people do not like to spend time thinking about things that make them feel sad or fearful.

[Sally Furniss]

Re: Osterholm Changes Pandemic Flu Emphasis -

Welcome Science Teacher

[tropical]

Re: Osterholm Changes Pandemic Flu Emphasis -

What I am applauding is the acknowledgment that we need to take charge of our own destiny and not wait for a state or federal government to determine our fate.

Even if I share your thinking also, it seems quite dificult to accomplish it, and thus it's not enaugh to survive an hypothetic serious deadly pandemic agent.
I understand that it represent a position that we must fight individualy and by a near community for ourself, but for that kind of danger which is something else than hurricanes, it is only one part of the equation.
The other part must be accomplished by the public organized forms of the society. Cartski and Farmer texts are on that trail.

States/govs DO determine the overall state of most questions.
You can't provide prepand/pand. vaccines your own.
You can't provide antivirals/antibiotics/medicines your own.
You can't provide food on the shelfs and enaugh clean water your own in a town, etc.

With the our own thinking we automaticaly pose ourself in an position as were the populace prior the scientific revolution of the society (which enable us with tools to counterfeit illnesses), instead of pushing the legal dedicated institutions to more invest in an overall shielding.

[sharon sanders]

Re: Osterholm Changes Pandemic Flu Emphasis -

I agree Tropical. The various governments provide essential and valuable services.

In a perfect world, each government would have a thorough and well thought out: pandemic plan, vaccine program, anti-viral plan, education plan, and training exercises - and would have funded these 100%. This is a worthy goal and I hope that many governments strive to accomplish this.

But.......while we are waiting........

We need to wake up and take charge of our own lives.

This starts with priorities. Family. Emphasis on the human spirit.

Forget about the acquisition of material objects. These things will be meaningless in a pandemic. No one will care what car you drive or where you live. We will be judged by how we treat others, not by what we own.

Get back to basics.

Hard and fruitful work. Closeness to family and friends.

These are the things that will save us in a real crisis.

The question we ask ourselves each day should not be - How can I make my government serve me better?

We should ask ourselves each day - How can I serve better?

How can I make a meaningful difference in the lives of my near ones today?

How can I make a difference in my community today?

We all leave this earth eventually.

What have we left behind?

[tropical]

Re: Osterholm Changes Pandemic Flu Emphasis -

Thanks Florida for your answer.

I can share your emotional, compassional, and community efforts, also.
And without unnecessary goods.

But I think that for the question:
"We should ask ourselves each day - How can I serve better?"
we enaugh good serve, mainly.

In plain words, the fact is that 3-5 years after this presumpted possibility of biological danger, after all world pandemic plans, we will must rely mainly on some very basic individual sentiments of mutual family/neighb. help, and without health sector care.

If we are there, that means an global factual preparedness failure, maybe.
The Wall of Dr. Osterholm (or P.F.?)

For the near community we can always try to do better if we are able, but the results would be not enaugh important to change the pandemic ravage, as Farmer stated:

""How many red flags must be run up the flagpole to motivate people toward preparation?"
My efforts to communicate/educate about pandemic preparedness among family and friends continue to frustrate me no matter how many big hurricanes seem to land.
I really think: people are in denial; people are too busy with daily activities; people do not feel a sense of urgency to deal with it; people are overwhelmed by the potential scope of a severe pandemic, they cannot imagine it; and / or people do not like to spend time thinking about things that make them feel sad or fearful."

[teederkee]

Re: Osterholm Changes Pandemic Flu Emphasis -

One way of "serving better" includes ensuring that others do the same. For example, when in the healthcare setting we should insist that healthcare providers wash their hands before and after treating you. We should insist that surfaces be wiped down promptly. Numerous studies have shown that time and workload constraints allow laspes in good practice.

The average person is too polite or submissive to question the healthcare professional, even if it is to ask whether they plan to wash their hands and stethoscopes before touching you. If we don't start doing that and/or assume that it is already being done, it won't really matter what else we hope to achieve.

[Amish Country]

Re: Osterholm Changes Pandemic Flu Emphasis -

It sounds like to me Dr. Osterholm is being a realist, granted like many of us here at Flutrackers a frustrated one. Political leaders in the US can only lead our people where they want to go. Pandemic flu preparation is not a major priority for most.

Pandemics and epidemics eventually burn themselves out, hopefully in no more than a few months time, granted they can reoccur and come in multiple waves of varying degrees of infection and mortality like the infamous 1918 influenza. Afterward we may have to improvise completely new coping mechanisms and/or revisit historic ones for treating the traumatized survivors and rebuilding a damaged society that maybe now missing many key, highly trained human resources. By anticipating these needs now I hope Dr Osterholm will help to have us that much further along when a pandemic strikes. In the course of human events his efforts to facilitate this process may be more important.

May I suggest the first thing that may have to anticipate rebuilding is the political structure? Since our politicians see little or no need to prepare sadly they and their loved ones will mostly likely be casualties.

I have no fear of my local politician in charge of emergency preparation perishing in a pandemic. My request to review the local emergency plan for a pandemic may have precipitated a 3 week hunting trip (I'm sure deer were in season somewhere at the time) followed closely by long vacation.

[tropical]

Re: Osterholm Changes Pandemic Flu Emphasis -

One way of "serving better" includes ensuring that others do the same. For example, when in the healthcare setting we should insist that healthcare providers wash their hands before and after treating you. We should insist that surfaces be wiped down promptly. Numerous studies have shown that time and workload constraints allow laspes in good practice.

The average person is too polite or submissive to question the healthcare professional, even if it is to ask whether they plan to wash their hands and stethoscopes before touching you. If we don't start doing that and/or assume that it is already being done, it won't really matter what else we hope to achieve.

Precisely what is worldwide present.

But unfortunately, that kind of we serve you better seems to be an "mission impossible", and can ensure reversed other kind of bad outcomes from the med. branch to the "pushers", even if all of them knows that those things are one of the main sanitation procedure postulates up from the Koch times.