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WHO News Conference (Noon - EST)
- Thread starter HenryN
- Start date
Re: WHO News Conference (Noon - EST)
WHO likely to declare flu pandemic Thursday
25 minutes ago
GENEVA (AP) ? The World Health Organization held an emergency swine flu meeting Thursday and was likely to declare the first flu pandemic in 41 years as infections climbed in the United States, Europe, Australia, South America and elsewhere.
Health officials from Scotland, Indonesia and Thailand said the agency would declare a swine flu pandemic ? a global epidemic ? on Thursday after a teleconference with leading flu experts. Officials at U.N. missions in Geneva also said they expected the imminent announcement of a pandemic.
WHO spokesman Thomas Abraham said only that the emergency meeting began at noon in Geneva and WHO member nations would be informed of the result. WHO Director-General Margaret Chan was holding a press conference at 6 p.m. (1600 GMT, noon EDT).
"It is likely in light of sustained community transmission in countries outside of North America ? most notably in Australia ? that level 6 will be declared," Scotland's Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon told Scottish lawmakers, adding it would be Thursday.
Indonesian health minister Siti Fadilah Supari said she had been notified by WHO that "today will be declared to be phase 6."
Phase 6 is WHO's highest alert level and means that a swine flu pandemic is under way. The last pandemic ? the Hong Kong flu of 1968 ? killed about 1 million people. Ordinary flu kills about 250,000 to 500,000 people each year.
Since the new flu strain ? dubbed A(H1N1) ? first emerged in Mexico and the United States in April, it has spread to 74 countries around the globe. On Wednesday, WHO reported 27,737 cases including 141 deaths. The agency has stressed that most cases are mild and require no treatment, but the fear is that a rash of new infections could overwhelm hospitals and health authorities ? especially in poorer countries.
The long-awaited pandemic announcement is scientific confirmation that a new flu virus has emerged and is quickly circling the globe. It will trigger drugmakers to speed up production of a swine flu vaccine and prompt governments to devote more money to containing the virus.
In May, several countries urged WHO not to declare a pandemic, fearing it would spark mass panic.
Fear has already gripped Argentina, where so many people worried about swine flu flooded into hospitals this week that emergency health services in the capital have collapsed. Last month, a bus arriving in Argentina from Chile was stoned by people who thought a passenger on it had swine flu. Chile has the most swine flu cases in South America.
In Hong Kong, the government on Thursday ordered all kindergartens and primary schools closed for two weeks after a dozen students tested positive for swine flu.
In Australia, swine flu cases jumped to more than 1,000 on Monday and reached 1,260 by late Wednesday.
WHO says its pandemic announcement would not mean the situation was worsening, since no mutations have been detected in the virus to show it is getting more deadly.
In Edinburgh, Sturgeon told lawmakers that a WHO announcement means countries should immediately activate their pandemic plans.
"A move to level 6 is not a verdict on the severity of the virus," she said. "It simply means that the extent of global spread now fulfills the definition of a pandemic."
<!-- google_ad_section_end(name=article) -->Associated Press writers Maria Cheng and Jill Lawless in London, Dikky Sinn in Hong Kong, Vincente L. Panetta in Buenos Aires and Bradley S. Klapper in Geneva contributed to this report.
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jTkkEKE5LtPih_5Jcc-3MpD0gOYQD98OG0FO0
WHO likely to declare flu pandemic Thursday
25 minutes ago
GENEVA (AP) ? The World Health Organization held an emergency swine flu meeting Thursday and was likely to declare the first flu pandemic in 41 years as infections climbed in the United States, Europe, Australia, South America and elsewhere.
Health officials from Scotland, Indonesia and Thailand said the agency would declare a swine flu pandemic ? a global epidemic ? on Thursday after a teleconference with leading flu experts. Officials at U.N. missions in Geneva also said they expected the imminent announcement of a pandemic.
WHO spokesman Thomas Abraham said only that the emergency meeting began at noon in Geneva and WHO member nations would be informed of the result. WHO Director-General Margaret Chan was holding a press conference at 6 p.m. (1600 GMT, noon EDT).
"It is likely in light of sustained community transmission in countries outside of North America ? most notably in Australia ? that level 6 will be declared," Scotland's Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon told Scottish lawmakers, adding it would be Thursday.
Indonesian health minister Siti Fadilah Supari said she had been notified by WHO that "today will be declared to be phase 6."
Phase 6 is WHO's highest alert level and means that a swine flu pandemic is under way. The last pandemic ? the Hong Kong flu of 1968 ? killed about 1 million people. Ordinary flu kills about 250,000 to 500,000 people each year.
Since the new flu strain ? dubbed A(H1N1) ? first emerged in Mexico and the United States in April, it has spread to 74 countries around the globe. On Wednesday, WHO reported 27,737 cases including 141 deaths. The agency has stressed that most cases are mild and require no treatment, but the fear is that a rash of new infections could overwhelm hospitals and health authorities ? especially in poorer countries.
The long-awaited pandemic announcement is scientific confirmation that a new flu virus has emerged and is quickly circling the globe. It will trigger drugmakers to speed up production of a swine flu vaccine and prompt governments to devote more money to containing the virus.
In May, several countries urged WHO not to declare a pandemic, fearing it would spark mass panic.
Fear has already gripped Argentina, where so many people worried about swine flu flooded into hospitals this week that emergency health services in the capital have collapsed. Last month, a bus arriving in Argentina from Chile was stoned by people who thought a passenger on it had swine flu. Chile has the most swine flu cases in South America.
In Hong Kong, the government on Thursday ordered all kindergartens and primary schools closed for two weeks after a dozen students tested positive for swine flu.
In Australia, swine flu cases jumped to more than 1,000 on Monday and reached 1,260 by late Wednesday.
WHO says its pandemic announcement would not mean the situation was worsening, since no mutations have been detected in the virus to show it is getting more deadly.
In Edinburgh, Sturgeon told lawmakers that a WHO announcement means countries should immediately activate their pandemic plans.
"A move to level 6 is not a verdict on the severity of the virus," she said. "It simply means that the extent of global spread now fulfills the definition of a pandemic."
<!-- google_ad_section_end(name=article) -->Associated Press writers Maria Cheng and Jill Lawless in London, Dikky Sinn in Hong Kong, Vincente L. Panetta in Buenos Aires and Bradley S. Klapper in Geneva contributed to this report.
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jTkkEKE5LtPih_5Jcc-3MpD0gOYQD98OG0FO0
sharon sanders
Editor-in-Chief & President
Re: WHO News Conference (Noon - EST)
Invitation to press conference
When: 18.00 hrs Geneva time, Thursday 11 June 2009
Where: Executive Board room, WHO headquarters
<table align="right" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="197"> <tbody><tr> <td class="insetbg"> Related links
Link to the audio file
Live webcast of the press conference
Full coverage of influenza A(H1N1)
</td></tr></tbody></table> Dr Margaret Chan, Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) will hold a press conference at 18:00 hrs Geneva time,
Thursday, 11 June 2009 on influenza A(H1N1) in the Executive Board room at the WHO headquarters.
Interpretation in French and Spanish will be provided.
Journalists who cannot be physically present can listen to the proceedings by dialling into one of the numbers given below. There are, however, no arrangements to ask questions over the telephone.
Instructions for dialling in:
From the list below, please use the number closest to you. If you are experiencing any problems accessing a number, please dial the phone number in Switzerland.
On connecting, type PIN code: 543665# on your telephone keypad.
If you have questions regarding photos or video broadcast material, contact Chris Black at blackc@who.int
Broadcast quality video will be available through outlets such as EBU, APTN and Reuters.
Switzerland :+41 22 580 5981
Belgium: +32 11500320
Brazil: +55 1133517047
China, Hong Kong SAR: +852 306 898 30
France: +33 1 722 53414
Germany: +49 6922224489
Hungary: +36 123 553 25
Ireland: +353 212363076
India: 0008001006460
Italy: +39 0236006662
Japan: +81 3 44 55 14 35
Malaysia: +60 362 795 041
Mexico: 001-8663715181
Netherlands: +31 207 947 913
New Zealand: +64 930 830 85
Federal Republic of Russia: +7 495 745 7712
Singapore: +6563077606
South Africa : 800980704
Spain: +34 917909587
UK: +44 207108 6209
USA: +1 866 388 1928
USA (toll) +1 703 621 9119
Invitation to press conference
When: 18.00 hrs Geneva time, Thursday 11 June 2009
Where: Executive Board room, WHO headquarters
<table align="right" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="197"> <tbody><tr> <td class="insetbg"> Related links
Link to the audio file
Live webcast of the press conference
Full coverage of influenza A(H1N1)
</td></tr></tbody></table> Dr Margaret Chan, Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) will hold a press conference at 18:00 hrs Geneva time,
Thursday, 11 June 2009 on influenza A(H1N1) in the Executive Board room at the WHO headquarters.
Interpretation in French and Spanish will be provided.
Journalists who cannot be physically present can listen to the proceedings by dialling into one of the numbers given below. There are, however, no arrangements to ask questions over the telephone.
Instructions for dialling in:
From the list below, please use the number closest to you. If you are experiencing any problems accessing a number, please dial the phone number in Switzerland.
On connecting, type PIN code: 543665# on your telephone keypad.
If you have questions regarding photos or video broadcast material, contact Chris Black at blackc@who.int
Broadcast quality video will be available through outlets such as EBU, APTN and Reuters.
Switzerland :+41 22 580 5981
Belgium: +32 11500320
Brazil: +55 1133517047
China, Hong Kong SAR: +852 306 898 30
France: +33 1 722 53414
Germany: +49 6922224489
Hungary: +36 123 553 25
Ireland: +353 212363076
India: 0008001006460
Italy: +39 0236006662
Japan: +81 3 44 55 14 35
Malaysia: +60 362 795 041
Mexico: 001-8663715181
Netherlands: +31 207 947 913
New Zealand: +64 930 830 85
Federal Republic of Russia: +7 495 745 7712
Singapore: +6563077606
South Africa : 800980704
Spain: +34 917909587
UK: +44 207108 6209
USA: +1 866 388 1928
USA (toll) +1 703 621 9119
Re: WHO News Conference (Noon - EST)
WHO chief Chan to brief press at 1200 EDT
Thu Jun 11, 2009 8:27am EDT
GENEVA (Reuters) - World Health Organization Director-General Dr Margaret Chan will hold a news conference at 1200 EDT on Thursday on the outbreak of influenza A (H1N1), the WHO said in a statement.
The press conference follows a meeting of WHO experts earlier on Thursday, who were expected to recommend to Chan that she raise the WHO's pandemic alert to the top phase 6 on a six-point scale, indicating a full flu pandemic.
(Reporting by Jonathan Lynn; Editing by Louise Ireland))
http://www.reuters.com/article/internal_ReutersNewsRoom_ExclusivesAndWins_MOLT/idUSTRE55A2M020090611
WHO chief Chan to brief press at 1200 EDT
Thu Jun 11, 2009 8:27am EDT
GENEVA (Reuters) - World Health Organization Director-General Dr Margaret Chan will hold a news conference at 1200 EDT on Thursday on the outbreak of influenza A (H1N1), the WHO said in a statement.
The press conference follows a meeting of WHO experts earlier on Thursday, who were expected to recommend to Chan that she raise the WHO's pandemic alert to the top phase 6 on a six-point scale, indicating a full flu pandemic.
(Reporting by Jonathan Lynn; Editing by Louise Ireland))
http://www.reuters.com/article/internal_ReutersNewsRoom_ExclusivesAndWins_MOLT/idUSTRE55A2M020090611
Re: WHO News Conference (Noon - EST)
Links to live broadcast / webcast
http://www.who.int/csr/disease/swineflu/influenza_h1n1_20090611/en/index.html
Links to live broadcast / webcast
http://www.who.int/csr/disease/swineflu/influenza_h1n1_20090611/en/index.html
Shiloh
Editor, Senior Moderator
Re: WHO News Conference (Noon - EST)
Source: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gp8M6dmt8Ho2DRK_eqR7dl7QsMXAD98OGQC00
GENEVA (AP) ? The World Health Organization tells members it's raising the swine flu alert to highest level.
Source: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gp8M6dmt8Ho2DRK_eqR7dl7QsMXAD98OGQC00
GENEVA (AP) ? The World Health Organization tells members it's raising the swine flu alert to highest level.
Re: WHO News Conference (Noon - EST)
<TABLE class=Box_44058489_Tb border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="98%"><TBODY><TR align=left><TD class=Box_44058489_Td width="100%">Posted: Thursday, 11 June 2009 10:04AM
WHO Declares That Swine Flu Has Hit Pandemic Level
</TD></TR><TR align=left><TD class=Box_44058489_Td width="100%">GENEVA (AP) -- The World Health Organization held an emergency swine flu meeting Thursday and declared the first flu pandemic in 41 years as infections climbed in the United States, Europe, Australia, South America and elsewhere.
Hundreds of Thousands of NY'ers Likely Had Swine FluNYC Swine Flu Death Toll Rises to 12
The agency declared a swine flu pandemic - a global epidemic - on Thursday after a teleconference with leading flu experts.
"It is likely in light of sustained community transmission in countries outside of North America - most notably in Australia - that level 6 will be declared," Scotland's Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon told Scottish lawmakers, adding it would be Thursday.
Indonesian health minister Siti Fadilah Supari said she had been notified by WHO that "today will be declared to be phase 6."
Phase 6 is WHO's highest alert level and means that a swine flu pandemic is under way. The last pandemic - the Hong Kong flu of 1968 - killed about 1 million people. Ordinary flu kills about 250,000 to 500,000 people each year.
Since swine flu first emerged in Mexico and the United States in April, it has spread to 74 countries around the globe. On Wednesday, WHO reported 27,737 cases including 141 deaths. Most cases are mild and require no treatment, but the fear is that a rash of new infections could overwhelm hospitals and health authorities - especially in poorer countries.
The long-awaited pandemic announcement is scientific confirmation that a new flu virus has emerged and is quickly circling the globe. It will trigger drugmakers to speed up production of a swine flu vaccine and prompt governments to devote more money to containing the virus.
In May, several countries urged WHO not to declare a pandemic, fearing it would spark mass panic.
Panic has already gripped Argentina, where so many people worried about swine flu flooded into hospitals this week that emergency health services have collapsed. Last month, a bus arriving in Argentina from Chile was stoned by people who thought a passenger on it had swine flu. Chile has the most swine flu cases in South America.
In Hong Kong, the government on Thursday ordered all kindergartens and primary schools closed for two weeks after a dozen students tested positive for swine flu.
In Australia, swine flu cases jumped to more than 1,000 on Monday and reached 1,260 by late Wednesday.
WHO says its pandemic announcement would not mean the situation was worsening, since no mutations have been detected in the virus to show it is getting more deadly.
In Edinburgh, Sturgeon told lawmakers that a WHO announcement means countries should immediately activate their pandemic plans.
"A move to level 6 is not a verdict on the severity of the virus," she said. "It simply means that the extent of global spread now fulfills the definition of a pandemic."
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES:
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
PHOTO GALLERY: Swine Flu Outbreak
LINK: CDC Info on Swine Flu
INTERACTIVE: Swine Flu Outbreak
http://www.1010wins.com/WHO-Declares-First-Flu-Pandemic-in-41-Years/4580109
<TABLE class=Box_44058489_Tb border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="98%"><TBODY><TR align=left><TD class=Box_44058489_Td width="100%">Posted: Thursday, 11 June 2009 10:04AM
WHO Declares That Swine Flu Has Hit Pandemic Level
</TD></TR><TR align=left><TD class=Box_44058489_Td width="100%">GENEVA (AP) -- The World Health Organization held an emergency swine flu meeting Thursday and declared the first flu pandemic in 41 years as infections climbed in the United States, Europe, Australia, South America and elsewhere.
Hundreds of Thousands of NY'ers Likely Had Swine FluNYC Swine Flu Death Toll Rises to 12
The agency declared a swine flu pandemic - a global epidemic - on Thursday after a teleconference with leading flu experts.
"It is likely in light of sustained community transmission in countries outside of North America - most notably in Australia - that level 6 will be declared," Scotland's Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon told Scottish lawmakers, adding it would be Thursday.
Indonesian health minister Siti Fadilah Supari said she had been notified by WHO that "today will be declared to be phase 6."
Phase 6 is WHO's highest alert level and means that a swine flu pandemic is under way. The last pandemic - the Hong Kong flu of 1968 - killed about 1 million people. Ordinary flu kills about 250,000 to 500,000 people each year.
Since swine flu first emerged in Mexico and the United States in April, it has spread to 74 countries around the globe. On Wednesday, WHO reported 27,737 cases including 141 deaths. Most cases are mild and require no treatment, but the fear is that a rash of new infections could overwhelm hospitals and health authorities - especially in poorer countries.
The long-awaited pandemic announcement is scientific confirmation that a new flu virus has emerged and is quickly circling the globe. It will trigger drugmakers to speed up production of a swine flu vaccine and prompt governments to devote more money to containing the virus.
In May, several countries urged WHO not to declare a pandemic, fearing it would spark mass panic.
Panic has already gripped Argentina, where so many people worried about swine flu flooded into hospitals this week that emergency health services have collapsed. Last month, a bus arriving in Argentina from Chile was stoned by people who thought a passenger on it had swine flu. Chile has the most swine flu cases in South America.
In Hong Kong, the government on Thursday ordered all kindergartens and primary schools closed for two weeks after a dozen students tested positive for swine flu.
In Australia, swine flu cases jumped to more than 1,000 on Monday and reached 1,260 by late Wednesday.
WHO says its pandemic announcement would not mean the situation was worsening, since no mutations have been detected in the virus to show it is getting more deadly.
In Edinburgh, Sturgeon told lawmakers that a WHO announcement means countries should immediately activate their pandemic plans.
"A move to level 6 is not a verdict on the severity of the virus," she said. "It simply means that the extent of global spread now fulfills the definition of a pandemic."
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES:
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
PHOTO GALLERY: Swine Flu Outbreak
LINK: CDC Info on Swine Flu
INTERACTIVE: Swine Flu Outbreak
http://www.1010wins.com/WHO-Declares-First-Flu-Pandemic-in-41-Years/4580109
Re: WHO News Conference (Noon - EST)
<TABLE class=storycontent cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0><TBODY><TR><TD colSpan=2>WHO 'declares swine flu pandemic'
</TD></TR><TR><TD class=storybody><!-- S BO --><!-- S IIMA --><TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=226 align=right><TBODY><TR><TD>
Many countries already have swine flu precautions in place
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><!-- E IIMA --><!-- S SF -->The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared a global flu pandemic after holding an emergency meeting, according to reports. It means the swine flu virus is spreading in at least two regions of the world with rising cases being seen in the UK, Australia, Japan and Chile.
The move does not necessarily mean the virus is causing more severe illness or more deaths.
The swine flu (H1N1) virus first emerged in Mexico in April.
<!-- E SF -->It has since spread to 74 countries.
Official reports say there have been 28,000 cases globally and 141 deaths and figures are rising daily.
Hong Kong said it was closing all its nurseries and primary schools for two weeks following 12 school cases.
It is the first flu pandemic in 40 years - the last in 1968 with Hong Kong flu killed about one million people.
<!-- S IBOX --><TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=231 align=right><TBODY><TR><TD width=5>
</TD><TD class=sibtbg>
It is global and fulfilling the requirements of a pandemic
Professor John Oxford, flu expert
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><!-- E IBOX -->The current pandemic seems to be moderate and causing mild illness in most people.
One factor which may have prompted the move to a level six pandemic was that in the southern hemisphere, the virus seems to be crowding out normal seasonal influenza.
It is thought the move was not prompted by the situation in any one country but the reports of several pockets of community spread.
The BBC's Imogen Foulkes, in Geneva, says that while the number of cases has made the declaration inevitable, the problem is that the pandemic phase system is designed for a very different type of virus.
WHO spokesman Gregory Hartl said it had been expecting something more like the deadlier bird flu.
"It was believed that the next pandemic would be something like H5N1 bird flu, where you were seeing really high death rates, and so there were people who believed we might be in a kind of apocalyptic situation and what we're really seeing now with H1N1 is that in most cases the disease is self-limiting," he told the BBC.
The WHO will have to manage the global anxiety the declaration of a pandemic will generate, our correspondent says.
Pandemic planning
There have been more than 800 cases in the UK with some areas of Scotland being particularly hard hit.
The government has been stockpiling antivirals such as Tamiflu and has ordered vaccine, some doses of which could be available by October.
<!-- S IBOX --><TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=231 align=right><TBODY><TR><TD width=5>
</TD><TD class=sibtbg>SWINE FLU - THE BASICS
Symptoms usually similar to seasonal flu - but deaths have been recorded
It is a new version of the H1N1 strain which caused the 1918 flu pandemic
Current treatments do work, but as yet there is no vaccine
Good personal hygiene, such as washing hands, covering nose when sneezing advised
<!-- S ILIN -->What comes next in flu fight
<!-- E ILIN -->
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><!-- E IBOX -->Chief medical officer, Sir Liam Donaldson said the WHO declaration of a pandemic would not significantly change the way the UK was dealing with swine flu at the moment.
But he added there could be some minor changes to who received antivirals.
"The declaration of a pandemic per se doesn't make a big difference to the to the way we are handling the outbreaks we have.
"We are going to continue to investigate every case that occurs and treat their contacts with antivirals even though they may not be ill.
"The difference is that the Health Protection Agency has learnt a lot about approaching this question of antiviral prophylaxis and they are going to be treating the closer contacts of the cases, rather than the more far-flung contacts, because they feel that that is supported by what they know so far about how the disease is transmitting.
He added: "These flu viruses can change their pattern of attack, so when we come into the flu season in the autumn and winter in this country, when we expect a big surge of cases, we need to watch very carefully to see if the character of the virus is changing."
Scottish health secretary Nicola Sturgeon said a move to level six means that countries need to be ready to implement pandemic plans immediately but the UK was already operating at a "heightened state of readiness".
But it could affect the speed at which the UK gets pandemic vaccine supplies but that had been factored into pandemic planning.
Flu expert Professor John Oxford, said people should not panic as the outbreak was milder than others seen in the past century.
"It is global and fulfilling the requirements of a pandemic but I don't think anyone should worry because nothing drastic has happened between yesterday and today."
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/8094655.stm
<TABLE class=storycontent cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0><TBODY><TR><TD colSpan=2>WHO 'declares swine flu pandemic'
</TD></TR><TR><TD class=storybody><!-- S BO --><!-- S IIMA --><TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=226 align=right><TBODY><TR><TD>
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><!-- E IIMA --><!-- S SF -->The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared a global flu pandemic after holding an emergency meeting, according to reports. It means the swine flu virus is spreading in at least two regions of the world with rising cases being seen in the UK, Australia, Japan and Chile.
The move does not necessarily mean the virus is causing more severe illness or more deaths.
The swine flu (H1N1) virus first emerged in Mexico in April.
<!-- E SF -->It has since spread to 74 countries.
Official reports say there have been 28,000 cases globally and 141 deaths and figures are rising daily.
Hong Kong said it was closing all its nurseries and primary schools for two weeks following 12 school cases.
It is the first flu pandemic in 40 years - the last in 1968 with Hong Kong flu killed about one million people.
<!-- S IBOX --><TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=231 align=right><TBODY><TR><TD width=5>
Professor John Oxford, flu expert
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><!-- E IBOX -->The current pandemic seems to be moderate and causing mild illness in most people.
One factor which may have prompted the move to a level six pandemic was that in the southern hemisphere, the virus seems to be crowding out normal seasonal influenza.
It is thought the move was not prompted by the situation in any one country but the reports of several pockets of community spread.
The BBC's Imogen Foulkes, in Geneva, says that while the number of cases has made the declaration inevitable, the problem is that the pandemic phase system is designed for a very different type of virus.
WHO spokesman Gregory Hartl said it had been expecting something more like the deadlier bird flu.
"It was believed that the next pandemic would be something like H5N1 bird flu, where you were seeing really high death rates, and so there were people who believed we might be in a kind of apocalyptic situation and what we're really seeing now with H1N1 is that in most cases the disease is self-limiting," he told the BBC.
The WHO will have to manage the global anxiety the declaration of a pandemic will generate, our correspondent says.
Pandemic planning
There have been more than 800 cases in the UK with some areas of Scotland being particularly hard hit.
The government has been stockpiling antivirals such as Tamiflu and has ordered vaccine, some doses of which could be available by October.
<!-- S IBOX --><TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=231 align=right><TBODY><TR><TD width=5>
Symptoms usually similar to seasonal flu - but deaths have been recorded
It is a new version of the H1N1 strain which caused the 1918 flu pandemic
Current treatments do work, but as yet there is no vaccine
Good personal hygiene, such as washing hands, covering nose when sneezing advised
<!-- S ILIN -->What comes next in flu fight
<!-- E ILIN -->
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><!-- E IBOX -->Chief medical officer, Sir Liam Donaldson said the WHO declaration of a pandemic would not significantly change the way the UK was dealing with swine flu at the moment.
But he added there could be some minor changes to who received antivirals.
"The declaration of a pandemic per se doesn't make a big difference to the to the way we are handling the outbreaks we have.
"We are going to continue to investigate every case that occurs and treat their contacts with antivirals even though they may not be ill.
"The difference is that the Health Protection Agency has learnt a lot about approaching this question of antiviral prophylaxis and they are going to be treating the closer contacts of the cases, rather than the more far-flung contacts, because they feel that that is supported by what they know so far about how the disease is transmitting.
He added: "These flu viruses can change their pattern of attack, so when we come into the flu season in the autumn and winter in this country, when we expect a big surge of cases, we need to watch very carefully to see if the character of the virus is changing."
Scottish health secretary Nicola Sturgeon said a move to level six means that countries need to be ready to implement pandemic plans immediately but the UK was already operating at a "heightened state of readiness".
But it could affect the speed at which the UK gets pandemic vaccine supplies but that had been factored into pandemic planning.
Flu expert Professor John Oxford, said people should not panic as the outbreak was milder than others seen in the past century.
"It is global and fulfilling the requirements of a pandemic but I don't think anyone should worry because nothing drastic has happened between yesterday and today."
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/8094655.stm
genesisair
Active member
Re: WHO News Conference (Noon - EST)
Here is a link to the video brodcast through WHO
http://mfile.akamai.com/8784/live/reflector:43160.ram?bkup=43162
Here is a link to the video brodcast through WHO
http://mfile.akamai.com/8784/live/reflector:43160.ram?bkup=43162
Tea
Well-known member
Re: WHO News Conference (Noon - EST)
Here is a live feed that opens in the browser..
http://www.nos.nl/journaal24/
Here is a live feed that opens in the browser..
http://www.nos.nl/journaal24/
Daisy
Resident
Re: WHO News Conference (Noon - EST)
Did the press conference already occur? I could-not/ can-not open up the live feed. I am prompted to download "receptor" and then my computer won't open it. What gives, any idea? I have watched these live in the past. Maybe my government computer has locked these live feeds out now. hmmm
Did the press conference already occur? I could-not/ can-not open up the live feed. I am prompted to download "receptor" and then my computer won't open it. What gives, any idea? I have watched these live in the past. Maybe my government computer has locked these live feeds out now. hmmm
Tea
Well-known member
Re: WHO News Conference (Noon - EST)
It ended just a bit ago.. Here is a link you can listen though.
Just started NOW (replay) *you have to register, but it's instant*
It ended just a bit ago.. Here is a link you can listen though.
Just started NOW (replay) *you have to register, but it's instant*
hornblower
Moderator
Re: WHO News Conference (Noon - EST)
The link in post #10 is working fine for me. It opens in Real Player. Dr. Fukuda is answering a question now on virus sharing.
The link in post #10 is working fine for me. It opens in Real Player. Dr. Fukuda is answering a question now on virus sharing.
SonicHappyHourAddict
Well-known member
Re: WHO News Conference (Noon - EST)
If it had not been for the live links here, I would not have heard the conference. The US media did not cover it live, scanned the major news channels all the while watching the live feeds on the computer. Thanks for all who posted the live feeds.
If it had not been for the live links here, I would not have heard the conference. The US media did not cover it live, scanned the major news channels all the while watching the live feeds on the computer. Thanks for all who posted the live feeds.
Legadillo
Resident
Re: WHO News Conference (Noon - EST)
Highlights of comments on flu by WHO chief Chan
Thu Jun 11, 2009 12:13pm EDT
GENEVA, June 11 (Reuters) - The following are highlights of comments by World Health Organisation Director-General Dr Margaret Chan at a briefing on the influenza (A) H1N1 pandemic on Thursday.
-- WHO is raising pandemic alert level to level 6.
"This means the world is moving into the early days of its first influenza pandemic in the 21st century."
-- Pandemic means geographical spread, not severity.
"We also want to make clear that the higher level of the pandemic does not necessarily mean we are going to see a more dangerous virus or see many more people falling severely ill or dying."
-- Global assessment of severity is pandemic is moderate, national picture may differ.
"The global level assessment is very different from national level assessments because it has to take into account the vulnerability of a population in a specific country, and also the health system resilience."
"The global versus national level severity assessment at times may create confusion for the general public."
Governments must adjust their public health response to the pandemic to the development of the outbreak in their country.
-- Some countries fear overreaction to the announcement, others ask what is the problem if it is mild.
"Again the balance between the overreaction or complacency is also another issue of great concern to the WHO."
-- Meeting with 8 countries on Wednesday where the situation is not clear led to conclusion that community transmission is wider than is being picked up by surveillance systems.
"Collectively, looking at that, we are satisfied that this virus is spreading to a number of countries and is not stoppable."
-- Information from southern hemisphere tallies with previous pandemics.
"We have seen now this new influenza H1N1 is actually crowding out the seasonal influenza virus. And this is a very typical feature of previous pandemics.
-- WHO sticks by recommendation against travel restrictions.
"We do not recommend closure of borders. There should not be restriction of movement of people, goods and services. Those are important recommendations, they stand.
-- Vaccine production for seasonal flu and H1N1 influenza.
"The southern hemisphere is already moving into their winter. They have completed seasonal influenza vaccine injections for those countries that have a policy for that."
"The manufacturers are actually now making seasonal influenza vaccine for the northern hemisphere countries for next winter. They will be finishing that in about two weeks' time, some may be faster and some may be a little later."
"They have also received the seed virus for making the pandemic vaccine. So our recommendation is they need to finish the seasonal vaccine and then move over." (Reporting by Stephanie Nebehay; Writing by Jonathan Lynn)
Highlights of comments on flu by WHO chief Chan
Thu Jun 11, 2009 12:13pm EDT
GENEVA, June 11 (Reuters) - The following are highlights of comments by World Health Organisation Director-General Dr Margaret Chan at a briefing on the influenza (A) H1N1 pandemic on Thursday.
-- WHO is raising pandemic alert level to level 6.
"This means the world is moving into the early days of its first influenza pandemic in the 21st century."
-- Pandemic means geographical spread, not severity.
"We also want to make clear that the higher level of the pandemic does not necessarily mean we are going to see a more dangerous virus or see many more people falling severely ill or dying."
-- Global assessment of severity is pandemic is moderate, national picture may differ.
"The global level assessment is very different from national level assessments because it has to take into account the vulnerability of a population in a specific country, and also the health system resilience."
"The global versus national level severity assessment at times may create confusion for the general public."
Governments must adjust their public health response to the pandemic to the development of the outbreak in their country.
-- Some countries fear overreaction to the announcement, others ask what is the problem if it is mild.
"Again the balance between the overreaction or complacency is also another issue of great concern to the WHO."
-- Meeting with 8 countries on Wednesday where the situation is not clear led to conclusion that community transmission is wider than is being picked up by surveillance systems.
"Collectively, looking at that, we are satisfied that this virus is spreading to a number of countries and is not stoppable."
-- Information from southern hemisphere tallies with previous pandemics.
"We have seen now this new influenza H1N1 is actually crowding out the seasonal influenza virus. And this is a very typical feature of previous pandemics.
-- WHO sticks by recommendation against travel restrictions.
"We do not recommend closure of borders. There should not be restriction of movement of people, goods and services. Those are important recommendations, they stand.
-- Vaccine production for seasonal flu and H1N1 influenza.
"The southern hemisphere is already moving into their winter. They have completed seasonal influenza vaccine injections for those countries that have a policy for that."
"The manufacturers are actually now making seasonal influenza vaccine for the northern hemisphere countries for next winter. They will be finishing that in about two weeks' time, some may be faster and some may be a little later."
"They have also received the seed virus for making the pandemic vaccine. So our recommendation is they need to finish the seasonal vaccine and then move over." (Reporting by Stephanie Nebehay; Writing by Jonathan Lynn)