Snowy Owl
Retired in 2010, In Memoriam
Experts ponder legal aspects of pandemic
Session reviews government powers, effects on civil liberties
http://www.insidebayarea.com/dailyreview/localnews/ci_3757336
Session reviews government powers, effects on civil liberties
http://www.insidebayarea.com/dailyreview/localnews/ci_3757336
MILLBRAE — On Day 5 of a deadly flu outbreak, there's no margin for error. Any missteps within the first several days could make the difference between containing a flu outbreak or helplessly watching it fan into the much-feared influenza pandemic.
That was the conclusion of about 200 health and legal experts assembled at the Clarion Hotel on Wednesday for a now-commonplace gathering: a flu pandemic planning session by those in charge of controlling a possible outbreak.
"The fragile hope is we can pounce on this early and contain it," said Dr. Anthony Iton, public health officer for Alameda County, who served on a panel at the event. "If we miss that opportunity, all bets are off."
By the fifth day of a hypothetical outbreak of a pandemic-caliber flu virus — one that spreads easily and is far deadlier than usual — public health departments might declare a state of emergency, Iton said. The leading candidate for causing such an outbreak is a now-famous flu virus called H5N1, which is carried primarily by certain bird populations.
Companies with affected employees would shut down temporarily, schools might close their doors, and federal health officials would jet into town to help control the outbreak and screen foreign travelers. Hospitals could face a run on their services and supplies, and public health workers would be working themselves to exhaustion. Patients would be kept in isolation, and all those potentially exposed kept under quarantine.
All this by Day 5.
The scene-setting session at the all-day conference gave a flavor of the extraordinary social, health, economic and political upheaval a full-blown pandemic would cause. Laced throughout the talk was consideration of the legal rights of health officials in containing outbreaks, and those of citizens faced with privacy violations.
The eight panelists pondered the case of a sales manager who fell ill on returning from Asia, after being exposed to coughing and sneezing travelers.
Most of the infected bird populations are in Asia, as were the more than 200 human cases of bird flu reported since 1997. Health officials believe most human bird flu infections arose from direct contact with infected poultry.
In this hypothetical scenario, by the third day the sales manager is hospitalized in critical condition, and the World Health Organization announces that casual human-to-human transmission of H5N1 — the most feared scenario — has occurred in Asia.
By the fifth day, eight other employees working at the hypothetical firm, called Manufacturer Inc., develop respiratory illnesses. By the sixth day, four of the sick employees are hospitalized. Two employees die that day, as does a janitor at the company hospitalized with a severe respiratory ailment.
A laboratory confirms four of the fictional cases are H5N1. Local health departments and Manufacturer Inc. begin receiving calls from media worldwide, and the company temporarily closes its doors. Word spreads
That was the conclusion of about 200 health and legal experts assembled at the Clarion Hotel on Wednesday for a now-commonplace gathering: a flu pandemic planning session by those in charge of controlling a possible outbreak.
"The fragile hope is we can pounce on this early and contain it," said Dr. Anthony Iton, public health officer for Alameda County, who served on a panel at the event. "If we miss that opportunity, all bets are off."
By the fifth day of a hypothetical outbreak of a pandemic-caliber flu virus — one that spreads easily and is far deadlier than usual — public health departments might declare a state of emergency, Iton said. The leading candidate for causing such an outbreak is a now-famous flu virus called H5N1, which is carried primarily by certain bird populations.
Companies with affected employees would shut down temporarily, schools might close their doors, and federal health officials would jet into town to help control the outbreak and screen foreign travelers. Hospitals could face a run on their services and supplies, and public health workers would be working themselves to exhaustion. Patients would be kept in isolation, and all those potentially exposed kept under quarantine.
All this by Day 5.
The scene-setting session at the all-day conference gave a flavor of the extraordinary social, health, economic and political upheaval a full-blown pandemic would cause. Laced throughout the talk was consideration of the legal rights of health officials in containing outbreaks, and those of citizens faced with privacy violations.
The eight panelists pondered the case of a sales manager who fell ill on returning from Asia, after being exposed to coughing and sneezing travelers.
Most of the infected bird populations are in Asia, as were the more than 200 human cases of bird flu reported since 1997. Health officials believe most human bird flu infections arose from direct contact with infected poultry.
In this hypothetical scenario, by the third day the sales manager is hospitalized in critical condition, and the World Health Organization announces that casual human-to-human transmission of H5N1 — the most feared scenario — has occurred in Asia.
By the fifth day, eight other employees working at the hypothetical firm, called Manufacturer Inc., develop respiratory illnesses. By the sixth day, four of the sick employees are hospitalized. Two employees die that day, as does a janitor at the company hospitalized with a severe respiratory ailment.
A laboratory confirms four of the fictional cases are H5N1. Local health departments and Manufacturer Inc. begin receiving calls from media worldwide, and the company temporarily closes its doors. Word spreads
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