In a message dated 12/5/2005 5:41:33 P.M. Eastern Standard Time,
[log in to unmask] writes:
Although it is possible for some variety of this flu to become commonly
transferrable to humans and subsequently transmissible between us, there is
no certainty that it ever will. Much like the possibility that an airborne
version of HIV will develop over time. There are thousands of animal
diseases that do not cross over species lines to which we are exposed
daily, any one of which might have the same effects. Currently you can only
get the "bird flu" from infected birds(and perhaps through mosquitoes), and
even then the odds are astronomical, since it is not a virus that normally
effects humans at all. Even if you catch it, it still can not be
transmitted from person to person, and it is nowhere near 100% fatal. At
this point it is hardly an earthshaking problem, and no amount of planning
on my institution's part is going to do a darned thing to change whether it
becomes a bigger one. It also seems odd to me that they are cranking out
vaccinations for a virus that does not yet exist, i.e. a virus that can be
transmitted from person to person. Perhaps a vaccination against the one
that occasional people get directly from birds will be helpful?
Mark,
Although not all animal diseases cross over to other species, all contagious
diseases that humans suffer from originated in other animal species.
I too believe (or would like to believe) that this potential pandemic is
just that and that human transmission will continue to be minimal and/or
contained. Scientists have been predicting a pandemic flu for a long time now. The
latest predicators in the bird flu may have alarmist overtones, but I would
totally fault the CDC or any scientist whom may know of a potential pandemic,
and has made no action or cause for concern.
Not every virus/disease is reportable, but the identification and
study/evidence of the avian bird flu virus will now be. There are numerous challenges
to this when diseases are present in countries that lack the resources to
address a potential pandemic. Sometimes an alarmist-type campaign is the only
call to action.
Regardless of your institution's level of preparedness, of course you are
not going to prevent this from becoming a bigger problem...in the sense that it
would already have to be a big problem before it reaches the boundaries of
your institution.
But rest assured that your institution no doubt already has guidelines in
place for dealing with epidemics -the planning has been done and is adaptable
to contend with minimizing the spread of a potential epidemic.
Just today I was reviewing some historical CCC documents and read about an
entire CCC Camp in CT that was shut down for 3 weeks following a scarlet fever
epidemic. Not all the CCC Camps in CT were closed - just the one where the
scarlet fever occurred.
In other documents - I've read about a CCC Camp that was required to
initiate hand washing for all enrollees prior to eating their lunch. The public
health department had identified the lack of proper hand washing to be the cause
of cholera that many enrollees and staff had been suffering from. I could
write a book about how the CCC addressed and contended with infectious diseases.
This is also how I learned that stomach cancer was the leading form of
cancer - until the 30's when meats were by then, then more commonly refrigerated,
rather than smoked/cured. By the 1930's it was known that charred (and pretty
much we now know that pretty much anything that is carbonized is a potential
carcinogen) meats could be carcinogenic.
In regards to a flu epidemic - we can't deny or ignore the facts. As a
population, we are not immune to this. The potential definitely exists. Whether
you chose to panic or not is a personal choice...but for those of us whom are
indeed responsible for other employees and are public places, these facts
cannot be ignored.
As far as the vaccine - I was not aware that anyone was 'cranking' any out.
Developing a vaccine and identifying resources to produce a vaccine (widely)
is a good thing. Stockpiling on the other hand...obviously there's money to
be made in that.
Like you, I too am not one to panic or otherwise over-react (or even react)
to a potential threat. Anything that causes panic among the general public is
scary in itself to see.
It is too soon to be taking any additional precautions at this time. But
perhaps it is a good time to check our museum's policies regarding epidemics.
You may find, especially for older institutions, that they have responded to
epidemics and potential epidemics in the past. They may have responded by
closing - this may still be a guideline and you should be aware of this in any
case...just as you should for any other instance which may require your
institution to close.
Pam
Pamela Silvestri, Volunteer
Connecticut State Department of Environmental Protection
State Parks Division
Shenipsit State Forest Headquarters
166 Chestnut Hill Road
Stafford Springs, Connecticut 06076
Telephone: (860) 684-3430
e-mail: [log in to unmask]
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