Area unprepared for bird flu pandemic
If the H5N1 bird flu pandemic hits the area, it will be like the difference between a tropical storm and Hurricane Katrina.
There would likely be no vaccine for the public if a full blow pandemic arises, as it would kill tens of thousands amid public chaos, school and business closing, shortages of food and other essentials and court-ordered quarantines and hospitalizations.
Health officials are calling attention to such dire warnings while at the same time, they also say the pandemic may hit this year, in 10 years or never at all.
“The hardest thing is preparing people for something that may or may not occur,” said Howard Steinberg, the Morris County Health Officer and coordinator of planning for a possible pandemic.
As it gears up to educate the public, the county is distributing 100,000 pamphlets, including 25,000 in Spanish, outlining steps to take in event of a bird flu pandemic. Steinberg said another 100,000 pamphlets are being prepared.
Health officials in the area said that if an influenza pandemic strikes, it will require massive funding to municipalities for everything from education to quarantines to treatment.
It also will require the public to closely follow instructions from public health officials and so far, many people may not believe in the potential or the seriousness of a pandemic.
“There seems to be a complacency as people haven’t bought into it,” said Mount Olive Health Officer Frank Wilpert. “We’re not as prepared as we would like to be.”
Area health officials said the planning process has begun and that they are taking their queues from state and federal directives. But they also said they expect the lion’s share of the responsibility will fall on the state government for guidance and support.
“I’m about as comfortable as we can be,” said Wilpert. “We’re up to the level the federal government wants. The federal government’s position has been that if this erupts in the U.S., the states and municipalities are on their own.”
The job of dealing with an pandemic will be like nothing local health officials have faced. Typically, they are trained and are busy inspecting restaurants, ensuring that septic and wells are working and other similar issues.
“There’s been a new layer with bioterrorism and Sept. 11 and it has changed the way we do things,” said Bernards Township Health Officer Lucy Forgione, whose office provides health services for the Mendhams and Chester, along with Bernards Township.
“It’s very difficult but we will do whatever it takes,” said Forgione. “I’m not afraid. We will just do what we have to do.”
Health officials said funding to get ready for a pandemic has been miniscule so far.
The initial grants for communities around the state to begin preparing for the pandemic amount to $5,000 for every municipality along with another 9 cents per person. That totals a whopping $6,400 for Mount Olive where Wilpert said it might be enough to buy several refrigerators to store future flu vaccines.
“It’s a drop in the bucket,” said Wilpert.
He said that inevitably, the township may have to invest in everything from updated communications equipment to masks for first responders.
Initial Funding
Thomas Slater, a spokesman for the state Department of Health, said an initial $2 million is being distributed to local health agencies. Currently, agencies are reviewing their abilities to respond to a pandemic and that further federal funding is expected next year to fill in the gaps, Slater said.
“I think inevitably, the pandemic will be in the United States,” said Wilpert. “Once it starts, it will be massive. Our role is still being developed but we will need a lot of cooperation from the public.”
The H5N1 avian influenza virus has claimed 123 lives around the world since 2003, none in the U.S. and all from contact with infected birds, according to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Health experts around the world are waiting for the first report of a human to human infection of the H5N1 influenza virus. That will mean the virus has mutated and that a pandemic could be likely to rival the flu pandemic of 1918 that killed millions.
“Once the virus mutates to human to human contact, it will spread like wildfire,” said Wilpert.
Scientists have been unable so far to develop a vaccine for the H5N1 virus and Wilpert said that every day that passes with no report of human to human contact means another day to find a vaccine.
Steinberg said a vaccine is not expected to be developed for at least four years and when it is it will be offered in limited supplies and only to emergency workers.
After the first case of H5N1 is diagnosed, alerts would be issued to health workers around the nation to be on the lookout for people with the specific symptoms. Victims would be placed in medical isolation units. Meanwhile, authorities would meet with victims to discern who they may have been with. As the chain is developed, individuals in contact with victims would be asked to voluntarily remain at home. If they resist voluntary quarantine, officials would secure court orders, Steinberg said.
The governor would decide on potential closings of public facilities such as schools.
In event of an onset of the avian flu, Steinberg said people should be vigilant in hand washing as the virus could be spread in mundane ways such as by contact with infected doorknobs. People also should keep their social distances from anyone who might be sneezing or coughing and wear protective masks when dealing with infected family members.
Steinberg also said families should maintain a supply of at least five days of non-perishable food and distilled water. In the event of an outbreak, truck drivers may refuse to make deliveries, causing shortages in food markets while repairs to vital services such as power lines and phone lines also may be interrupted.
Currently, public facilities like hospitals, nursing homes and schools are on the alert to report any suspected cases of avian flu.
In the event of an outbreak, local health departments will be largely responsible for surveillance to track the number of cases, keeping the public informed about preventive measures, coordinating quarantines and if available, for distributing vaccines.
Latest Drill
Most recently, health departments from around the county participated in a drill on May 18-19 to test their abilities to distribute vaccines. Termed “Operation Plague Doctor,” health officials sent convoys to Morristown to pick up “medicine” and then distributed them to their first responders.
“We successfully completed our distribution in 45 minutes,” said Wilpert.
Mark Caputo, Randolph’s assistant health officer, said health workers distributed their “doses” of two anti-flu medications, Ciproflaxin and Doxycycline, in less than two hours.
“It was a lot of paperwork,” said Caputo. “Not only is it important to inoculate or administer pills to first responders, but to their families as well. That leaves first responders free to respond to the needs of others without having to worry about the safety of their families.”
Randolph has participated in similar drills in the past. In April 2005, Randolph’s first responders participated in a federal preparedness exercise held in Roxbury, and held their own the following month in May. Both exercises tested the ability of the locals to efficiently distribute life-saving medication to residents.
Wilpert said many health workers have already gone through training to respond to bioterrorism and swine flu and other potential mass public health issues, similar to those that would be posed by a flu pandemic.
The state began pandemic planning in 1999, according to Slater of the state Department of Health.
He said the nation was rocked by a flu pandemic in 1968 but that this will be the first time the nation is engaged in massive planning in advance.
In response to the potential for a pandemic, the state has been divided into 19 Local Information Communication Systems or LINCS. The LINCS are responsible for coordinating the responses of area epidemiologists, health officers and health educators, Slater said.
Slater said the individual municipalities and local health facilities will be responsible for detection and trying to contain reported cases along with distributing any anti-viral medicine.
Gary Annibal, the health officer for Harding Township, said that in the event of an outbreak, the township would notify residents through the reverse 911 system and the media.
He said the township has plans in place to dispense vaccines first to emergency personnel and then to residents.
“If we don’t have medicine, we would go to isolation and quarantine,” Annibal said.
Annibal said he will be meeting with his counterparts from Hanover and Morris Township on Friday to continue to review pandemic planning. He said he was comfortable with the status of the planning
“We will have some ramp up time because biological epidemics don’t come on the scene full blown,” Annibal said. “It won’t happen overnight. I’m fairly comfortable we will be able to meet demands as they occur. I’m not doom and gloom about this.”
Health agencies around the area share ideas and strategies through a group known as the Morris County Regional Public Health Partnership.
The group’s president, Peter Corrreale, was measured in his optimism that there may not be an outbreak.
“It’s been out there since 2003,” said Correalle, who is the health officer in Pequannock. “It may never be human to human.”
Corrreale said members are now assessing if they have the resources to quarantine residents.
In event of an outbreak, public health agencies also would draw on volunteer nurses, doctors and other health workers who have joined the Morris County Medical Reserve Corps.
Health Officer Forgione said there are about 120 volunteers with the reserve corps but that many might not help in event of a pandemic.
“If it’s a contagious pandemic, these people will want to take care of their children first,” said Forgione.
Forgione said she has been encouraging school systems and businesses to develop plans in the event of an outbreak.
She said she also has a supply of masks to distribute to health care workers and other emergency workers but that the masks wouldn’t be effective because they must be personally fitted to each emergency worker.
If an outbreak comes, Forgione said she expects to be overwhelmed by the work.
“The only thing I can say is I need help, manpower,” said Forgione.
If the H5N1 bird flu pandemic hits the area, it will be like the difference between a tropical storm and Hurricane Katrina.
There would likely be no vaccine for the public if a full blow pandemic arises, as it would kill tens of thousands amid public chaos, school and business closing, shortages of food and other essentials and court-ordered quarantines and hospitalizations.
Health officials are calling attention to such dire warnings while at the same time, they also say the pandemic may hit this year, in 10 years or never at all.
“The hardest thing is preparing people for something that may or may not occur,” said Howard Steinberg, the Morris County Health Officer and coordinator of planning for a possible pandemic.
As it gears up to educate the public, the county is distributing 100,000 pamphlets, including 25,000 in Spanish, outlining steps to take in event of a bird flu pandemic. Steinberg said another 100,000 pamphlets are being prepared.
Health officials in the area said that if an influenza pandemic strikes, it will require massive funding to municipalities for everything from education to quarantines to treatment.
It also will require the public to closely follow instructions from public health officials and so far, many people may not believe in the potential or the seriousness of a pandemic.
“There seems to be a complacency as people haven’t bought into it,” said Mount Olive Health Officer Frank Wilpert. “We’re not as prepared as we would like to be.”
Area health officials said the planning process has begun and that they are taking their queues from state and federal directives. But they also said they expect the lion’s share of the responsibility will fall on the state government for guidance and support.
“I’m about as comfortable as we can be,” said Wilpert. “We’re up to the level the federal government wants. The federal government’s position has been that if this erupts in the U.S., the states and municipalities are on their own.”
The job of dealing with an pandemic will be like nothing local health officials have faced. Typically, they are trained and are busy inspecting restaurants, ensuring that septic and wells are working and other similar issues.
“There’s been a new layer with bioterrorism and Sept. 11 and it has changed the way we do things,” said Bernards Township Health Officer Lucy Forgione, whose office provides health services for the Mendhams and Chester, along with Bernards Township.
“It’s very difficult but we will do whatever it takes,” said Forgione. “I’m not afraid. We will just do what we have to do.”
Health officials said funding to get ready for a pandemic has been miniscule so far.
The initial grants for communities around the state to begin preparing for the pandemic amount to $5,000 for every municipality along with another 9 cents per person. That totals a whopping $6,400 for Mount Olive where Wilpert said it might be enough to buy several refrigerators to store future flu vaccines.
“It’s a drop in the bucket,” said Wilpert.
He said that inevitably, the township may have to invest in everything from updated communications equipment to masks for first responders.
Initial Funding
Thomas Slater, a spokesman for the state Department of Health, said an initial $2 million is being distributed to local health agencies. Currently, agencies are reviewing their abilities to respond to a pandemic and that further federal funding is expected next year to fill in the gaps, Slater said.
“I think inevitably, the pandemic will be in the United States,” said Wilpert. “Once it starts, it will be massive. Our role is still being developed but we will need a lot of cooperation from the public.”
The H5N1 avian influenza virus has claimed 123 lives around the world since 2003, none in the U.S. and all from contact with infected birds, according to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Health experts around the world are waiting for the first report of a human to human infection of the H5N1 influenza virus. That will mean the virus has mutated and that a pandemic could be likely to rival the flu pandemic of 1918 that killed millions.
“Once the virus mutates to human to human contact, it will spread like wildfire,” said Wilpert.
Scientists have been unable so far to develop a vaccine for the H5N1 virus and Wilpert said that every day that passes with no report of human to human contact means another day to find a vaccine.
Steinberg said a vaccine is not expected to be developed for at least four years and when it is it will be offered in limited supplies and only to emergency workers.
After the first case of H5N1 is diagnosed, alerts would be issued to health workers around the nation to be on the lookout for people with the specific symptoms. Victims would be placed in medical isolation units. Meanwhile, authorities would meet with victims to discern who they may have been with. As the chain is developed, individuals in contact with victims would be asked to voluntarily remain at home. If they resist voluntary quarantine, officials would secure court orders, Steinberg said.
The governor would decide on potential closings of public facilities such as schools.
In event of an onset of the avian flu, Steinberg said people should be vigilant in hand washing as the virus could be spread in mundane ways such as by contact with infected doorknobs. People also should keep their social distances from anyone who might be sneezing or coughing and wear protective masks when dealing with infected family members.
Steinberg also said families should maintain a supply of at least five days of non-perishable food and distilled water. In the event of an outbreak, truck drivers may refuse to make deliveries, causing shortages in food markets while repairs to vital services such as power lines and phone lines also may be interrupted.
Currently, public facilities like hospitals, nursing homes and schools are on the alert to report any suspected cases of avian flu.
In the event of an outbreak, local health departments will be largely responsible for surveillance to track the number of cases, keeping the public informed about preventive measures, coordinating quarantines and if available, for distributing vaccines.
Latest Drill
Most recently, health departments from around the county participated in a drill on May 18-19 to test their abilities to distribute vaccines. Termed “Operation Plague Doctor,” health officials sent convoys to Morristown to pick up “medicine” and then distributed them to their first responders.
“We successfully completed our distribution in 45 minutes,” said Wilpert.
Mark Caputo, Randolph’s assistant health officer, said health workers distributed their “doses” of two anti-flu medications, Ciproflaxin and Doxycycline, in less than two hours.
“It was a lot of paperwork,” said Caputo. “Not only is it important to inoculate or administer pills to first responders, but to their families as well. That leaves first responders free to respond to the needs of others without having to worry about the safety of their families.”
Randolph has participated in similar drills in the past. In April 2005, Randolph’s first responders participated in a federal preparedness exercise held in Roxbury, and held their own the following month in May. Both exercises tested the ability of the locals to efficiently distribute life-saving medication to residents.
Wilpert said many health workers have already gone through training to respond to bioterrorism and swine flu and other potential mass public health issues, similar to those that would be posed by a flu pandemic.
The state began pandemic planning in 1999, according to Slater of the state Department of Health.
He said the nation was rocked by a flu pandemic in 1968 but that this will be the first time the nation is engaged in massive planning in advance.
In response to the potential for a pandemic, the state has been divided into 19 Local Information Communication Systems or LINCS. The LINCS are responsible for coordinating the responses of area epidemiologists, health officers and health educators, Slater said.
Slater said the individual municipalities and local health facilities will be responsible for detection and trying to contain reported cases along with distributing any anti-viral medicine.
Gary Annibal, the health officer for Harding Township, said that in the event of an outbreak, the township would notify residents through the reverse 911 system and the media.
He said the township has plans in place to dispense vaccines first to emergency personnel and then to residents.
“If we don’t have medicine, we would go to isolation and quarantine,” Annibal said.
Annibal said he will be meeting with his counterparts from Hanover and Morris Township on Friday to continue to review pandemic planning. He said he was comfortable with the status of the planning
“We will have some ramp up time because biological epidemics don’t come on the scene full blown,” Annibal said. “It won’t happen overnight. I’m fairly comfortable we will be able to meet demands as they occur. I’m not doom and gloom about this.”
Health agencies around the area share ideas and strategies through a group known as the Morris County Regional Public Health Partnership.
The group’s president, Peter Corrreale, was measured in his optimism that there may not be an outbreak.
“It’s been out there since 2003,” said Correalle, who is the health officer in Pequannock. “It may never be human to human.”
Corrreale said members are now assessing if they have the resources to quarantine residents.
In event of an outbreak, public health agencies also would draw on volunteer nurses, doctors and other health workers who have joined the Morris County Medical Reserve Corps.
Health Officer Forgione said there are about 120 volunteers with the reserve corps but that many might not help in event of a pandemic.
“If it’s a contagious pandemic, these people will want to take care of their children first,” said Forgione.
Forgione said she has been encouraging school systems and businesses to develop plans in the event of an outbreak.
She said she also has a supply of masks to distribute to health care workers and other emergency workers but that the masks wouldn’t be effective because they must be personally fitted to each emergency worker.
If an outbreak comes, Forgione said she expects to be overwhelmed by the work.
“The only thing I can say is I need help, manpower,” said Forgione.