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BEHIND-THE-SCENES PREPAREDNESS WORK ALREADY UNDER WAY
By Nick Schneider, Assignments Editor
June 28, 2006 (The Daily World)
Behind-the-scene preparedness was stressed by panelists and presenters who participated in Greene County's second of four scheduled pandemic avian or bird flu informational meetings staged Tuesday night at the First Baptist Church in Bloomfield.
A sparse crowd was on hand to hear a group of representatives from a host of local health care and emergency preparedness organizations tell what they are doing to prepare for an anticipated pandemic outbreak in the United States - and more importantly, here in the county.
Representatives from the Greene County Health Department, Greene County General Hospital, Greene County Home Health Care, Purdue Extension Service, Greene County Emergency Management Agency, Greene County Tobacco Prevention and Cessation Partnership and the Indiana State Department of Health-Office of Preparedness and Emergency Response are working together to put a ?common sense? plan in place to ensure the safety of local residents, according to Andrea Alltop, who serves as Greene County Public Health Preparedness Coordinator.
?We hope through this that it will help prepare individuals, families, workplaces,? she said.
Other informal informational town hall meetings are slated for July 18 at Eastern Greene High School cafeteria and on Aug.17 at the Jasonville Senior Citizen Center. Both meetings will start at 7 p.m.
A slide presentation compiled by Greene County Health Officer Dr. Fred Ridge M.D. was moderated by Greene County Public Health Nurse Marilyn Crays.
Dr. Ridge was unable to attend Tuesday's meeting.
Crays noted that an estimated 150 million people died worldwide during Spanish flu outbreak of 1918-1919 - more people than any other illness in the history of the world during a similar time period. The disease took about six months to spread all the way around the world and had death rate 25 times higher than the previous epidemics.
The majority of people who died during that pandemic were in the 18- to 40- year-old range.
Other similar influenza epidemics have occurred in the 20th century on a small scale - the Asian flu in 1957-1958 and the Hong Kong flu in 1968-1969. There was also the Swine flu scare in 1976 and 1977.
In a typical flu-season about 36,000 die in the United States alone, she said.
Crays said currently world health professionals are concerned that the continued spread of a highly pathogenic avian H5N1 type virus now going across eastern Asia and other countries represents a significant threat to human health. That's the reason there is a global alert and a pandemic outbreak is expected.
?It's going to occur. We just don't know when,? Crays stated.
The H5N1 virus has raised concerns about a potential human pandemic because:
- It is especially virulent and causes a severe infection.
- It is generally spread by migratory birds like geese and ducks.
- It can be transmitted from birds to mammals and in some limited circumstances to humans.
- Like other influenza viruses, it continues to evolve.
Since 2003, a growing number of human H5N1 cases have been reported in Azerbaijan, Cambodia, China, Djibouti, Egypt, Indonesia, Iraq, Thailand, Turkey, and Vietnam. More than half of the people infected with the H5N1 virus have died. Most of these cases are all believed to have been caused by exposure to infected poultry. There has been no sustained human-to-human transmission of the disease, she said.
The county health nurse said that pandemics are classed in six phases and she believes the United States is in the third phase or the ?alert? period at the present time.
Public health experts predict that a pandemic-type avian or bird flu outbreak could claim 100 million lives in a worst case scenario. The disease was first reported in 2003 and there have been 115 confirmed human cases and 55 deaths to date.
Crays stressed there have been no substantiated human to human transmission of the virus.
Greene County General Hospital's director of infection control Cheryl Corbin may have had the best advice of the night when she said ?Don't panic, use common sense.?
She stressed the importance of proper hand washing techniques and sanitizing with a product that is 98 percent alcohol based.
Corbin added, ?We need to teach people to wash their hands when they are not visibly soiled.?
The rinsing of fruits and vegetables purchased at the store before consumption is also very important, she said.
Corbin also noted that the bird flu or avian flu is not an air-borne virus, but rather a droplet virus that falls to the ground in about three feet. Thus, it is spread by droplet contact so covering your mouth when coughing or nose when sneezing is essential to stop its spread.
Greene County General Hospital assistant administrator Randy Padgett said behind the scenes planning and purchasing of supplies is already underway at his facility.
Padgett admitted that staffing will be a problem if the pandemic hits as expected, but the hospital has contingency plans to be able to function and provide essential health care services.
He pointed out that a large scale outbreak could require the hospital to establish and off-site medical facility and also to re-configure the current 25-bed hospital to accommodate many more patients. The facility formerly was certified for 76-beds and Padgett said plans are in place to expand the present capacity if the outbreak strikes.
The hospital spokesman also noted that the virus hits the patient's respiratory system hard and many times ventilators are required to be used in treatment. GCGH does not use ventilators on a frequent basis and probably only has two or three of the units in the hospital.
As a precaution, he said the hospital has begun to stockpile a quantity of disposable respirators that can aid patients, if they are stricken with pneumonia-like symptoms associated with the pandemic flu.
?There's a lot of things going on behind the scenes to prepare,? Padgett said. ?If this event does break out, its' going to create some great challenges for us.?
Greene County Emergency Management Director Roger Axe offered a host of common sense tips in warding off the disease including:
? Maintain a healthy lifestyle. Exercise and get proper amounts of rest to keep your immune system functioning.
? Drink at least eight glasses of water daily to also enhance your immune system.
? Start to stockpile over-the-counter medications and toilet paper - accumulating a 30-day supply if possible.
? Observe good sanitation practices like hand washing and sanitizing when coming in contact with items that are touched by the hands like door knobs and shopping carts. Axe said he will soon be encouraging Greene County offices to have hand sanitizers available for employees.
Most importantly, Axe noted, ?If you are sick, stay at home. Don't go out and infect other people.?
One of the presenters was Ed Borter, who operates the Odon Veterinary Clinic. Borter serves as a volunteer on an Indiana Board of Animal Heath Surveillance Emergency Response Team (ASERT).
The ASERT teams are called upon in the event of an animal health emergency in the state. The ASERT teams consist of veterinarians from across the state, equipped with technology and knowledge to respond in any type of animal health emergency, be it a natural or a bio-terrorism disaster. Sixty veterinarians have volunteered to become a part of the ASERT program. These veterinarians are divided into 11 teams, grouped by their geographic locations throughout the state. Teams are trained in all the aspects of emergency response including incident command and agriculture bio-terrorism.
The group is active in tracking all types of livestock diseases.
?As a Board of Animal Health, we are well organized,? Borter stated.
Borter said poultry, horses and swine are especially susceptible to flu-like diseases and mutation of the viruses makes it difficult to treat with vaccines.
He said if the pandemic flu strikes as experts predict, then local flocks of turkeys and other poultry would likely be exterminated in a very short period of time to assist in stopping the spread of the virus.
Borter said testing for H5N1 virus is already underway at area processing plants like Perdue Farms in Washington.
?We're making plans to identify every farm so if a cow or something comes up with a problem, then within 48 hours we'll know exactly where it's at or where it's gone,? he said. ?That's one of the things the veterinary profession is doing to have this under control.?
Borter in ?tongue and cheek' fashion drew plenty of laughs when he looked at the other panelists and noted, ?You guys have all scared me to death. I'm going to use some common sense. I'm not going to panic, but I going to Jim Ray Cave (if the pandemic flu hits) and I hope none of you know where it's at. I don't want you to come to Jim Ray Cave (near Ridgeport) - stay away from there.?
Source
By Nick Schneider, Assignments Editor
June 28, 2006 (The Daily World)
Behind-the-scene preparedness was stressed by panelists and presenters who participated in Greene County's second of four scheduled pandemic avian or bird flu informational meetings staged Tuesday night at the First Baptist Church in Bloomfield.
A sparse crowd was on hand to hear a group of representatives from a host of local health care and emergency preparedness organizations tell what they are doing to prepare for an anticipated pandemic outbreak in the United States - and more importantly, here in the county.
Representatives from the Greene County Health Department, Greene County General Hospital, Greene County Home Health Care, Purdue Extension Service, Greene County Emergency Management Agency, Greene County Tobacco Prevention and Cessation Partnership and the Indiana State Department of Health-Office of Preparedness and Emergency Response are working together to put a ?common sense? plan in place to ensure the safety of local residents, according to Andrea Alltop, who serves as Greene County Public Health Preparedness Coordinator.
?We hope through this that it will help prepare individuals, families, workplaces,? she said.
Other informal informational town hall meetings are slated for July 18 at Eastern Greene High School cafeteria and on Aug.17 at the Jasonville Senior Citizen Center. Both meetings will start at 7 p.m.
A slide presentation compiled by Greene County Health Officer Dr. Fred Ridge M.D. was moderated by Greene County Public Health Nurse Marilyn Crays.
Dr. Ridge was unable to attend Tuesday's meeting.
Crays noted that an estimated 150 million people died worldwide during Spanish flu outbreak of 1918-1919 - more people than any other illness in the history of the world during a similar time period. The disease took about six months to spread all the way around the world and had death rate 25 times higher than the previous epidemics.
The majority of people who died during that pandemic were in the 18- to 40- year-old range.
Other similar influenza epidemics have occurred in the 20th century on a small scale - the Asian flu in 1957-1958 and the Hong Kong flu in 1968-1969. There was also the Swine flu scare in 1976 and 1977.
In a typical flu-season about 36,000 die in the United States alone, she said.
Crays said currently world health professionals are concerned that the continued spread of a highly pathogenic avian H5N1 type virus now going across eastern Asia and other countries represents a significant threat to human health. That's the reason there is a global alert and a pandemic outbreak is expected.
?It's going to occur. We just don't know when,? Crays stated.
The H5N1 virus has raised concerns about a potential human pandemic because:
- It is especially virulent and causes a severe infection.
- It is generally spread by migratory birds like geese and ducks.
- It can be transmitted from birds to mammals and in some limited circumstances to humans.
- Like other influenza viruses, it continues to evolve.
Since 2003, a growing number of human H5N1 cases have been reported in Azerbaijan, Cambodia, China, Djibouti, Egypt, Indonesia, Iraq, Thailand, Turkey, and Vietnam. More than half of the people infected with the H5N1 virus have died. Most of these cases are all believed to have been caused by exposure to infected poultry. There has been no sustained human-to-human transmission of the disease, she said.
The county health nurse said that pandemics are classed in six phases and she believes the United States is in the third phase or the ?alert? period at the present time.
Public health experts predict that a pandemic-type avian or bird flu outbreak could claim 100 million lives in a worst case scenario. The disease was first reported in 2003 and there have been 115 confirmed human cases and 55 deaths to date.
Crays stressed there have been no substantiated human to human transmission of the virus.
Greene County General Hospital's director of infection control Cheryl Corbin may have had the best advice of the night when she said ?Don't panic, use common sense.?
She stressed the importance of proper hand washing techniques and sanitizing with a product that is 98 percent alcohol based.
Corbin added, ?We need to teach people to wash their hands when they are not visibly soiled.?
The rinsing of fruits and vegetables purchased at the store before consumption is also very important, she said.
Corbin also noted that the bird flu or avian flu is not an air-borne virus, but rather a droplet virus that falls to the ground in about three feet. Thus, it is spread by droplet contact so covering your mouth when coughing or nose when sneezing is essential to stop its spread.
Greene County General Hospital assistant administrator Randy Padgett said behind the scenes planning and purchasing of supplies is already underway at his facility.
Padgett admitted that staffing will be a problem if the pandemic hits as expected, but the hospital has contingency plans to be able to function and provide essential health care services.
He pointed out that a large scale outbreak could require the hospital to establish and off-site medical facility and also to re-configure the current 25-bed hospital to accommodate many more patients. The facility formerly was certified for 76-beds and Padgett said plans are in place to expand the present capacity if the outbreak strikes.
The hospital spokesman also noted that the virus hits the patient's respiratory system hard and many times ventilators are required to be used in treatment. GCGH does not use ventilators on a frequent basis and probably only has two or three of the units in the hospital.
As a precaution, he said the hospital has begun to stockpile a quantity of disposable respirators that can aid patients, if they are stricken with pneumonia-like symptoms associated with the pandemic flu.
?There's a lot of things going on behind the scenes to prepare,? Padgett said. ?If this event does break out, its' going to create some great challenges for us.?
Greene County Emergency Management Director Roger Axe offered a host of common sense tips in warding off the disease including:
? Maintain a healthy lifestyle. Exercise and get proper amounts of rest to keep your immune system functioning.
? Drink at least eight glasses of water daily to also enhance your immune system.
? Start to stockpile over-the-counter medications and toilet paper - accumulating a 30-day supply if possible.
? Observe good sanitation practices like hand washing and sanitizing when coming in contact with items that are touched by the hands like door knobs and shopping carts. Axe said he will soon be encouraging Greene County offices to have hand sanitizers available for employees.
Most importantly, Axe noted, ?If you are sick, stay at home. Don't go out and infect other people.?
One of the presenters was Ed Borter, who operates the Odon Veterinary Clinic. Borter serves as a volunteer on an Indiana Board of Animal Heath Surveillance Emergency Response Team (ASERT).
The ASERT teams are called upon in the event of an animal health emergency in the state. The ASERT teams consist of veterinarians from across the state, equipped with technology and knowledge to respond in any type of animal health emergency, be it a natural or a bio-terrorism disaster. Sixty veterinarians have volunteered to become a part of the ASERT program. These veterinarians are divided into 11 teams, grouped by their geographic locations throughout the state. Teams are trained in all the aspects of emergency response including incident command and agriculture bio-terrorism.
The group is active in tracking all types of livestock diseases.
?As a Board of Animal Health, we are well organized,? Borter stated.
Borter said poultry, horses and swine are especially susceptible to flu-like diseases and mutation of the viruses makes it difficult to treat with vaccines.
He said if the pandemic flu strikes as experts predict, then local flocks of turkeys and other poultry would likely be exterminated in a very short period of time to assist in stopping the spread of the virus.
Borter said testing for H5N1 virus is already underway at area processing plants like Perdue Farms in Washington.
?We're making plans to identify every farm so if a cow or something comes up with a problem, then within 48 hours we'll know exactly where it's at or where it's gone,? he said. ?That's one of the things the veterinary profession is doing to have this under control.?
Borter in ?tongue and cheek' fashion drew plenty of laughs when he looked at the other panelists and noted, ?You guys have all scared me to death. I'm going to use some common sense. I'm not going to panic, but I going to Jim Ray Cave (if the pandemic flu hits) and I hope none of you know where it's at. I don't want you to come to Jim Ray Cave (near Ridgeport) - stay away from there.?
Source