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 The Influenza A(H1N1) (formerly known as swine influenza) outbreak is now classified by the World Health Organization as a phase six full pandemic.
This page is being updated with news and resources as the pandemic develops. Refresh your browser to ensure you are reading the latest version.
Latest update: April 13th 2010
Latest WHO update:
Current WHO situation report
For the latest WHO press briefing and general situation information, go to: http://www.who.int/csr/disease/swineflu/en/index.html
April 13th 2010
External review of WHO pandemic response begins
An in-depth review by external experts to assess the global response to the H1N1 pandemic and identify lessons for the future is underway.
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April 7th 2010
UK government pandemic vaccine deal switches H1N1 orders for H5N1
Precautionary measure against a ‘bird flu’ related pandemic.
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March 26th 2010
UK government announces ‘a strategic and independent review of the UK response to swine flu’
Dame Deirdre Hine, a former Welsh Chief Medical Officer, will chair the independent review.
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March 10th 2010
European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control assesses 2010 pandemic risk
No H1N1 pandemic waves are anticipated in Europe this year.
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February 25th 2010
WHO Emergency Committee meeting reviews H1N1 pandemic status
Concludes that it is too early to step down pandemic status.
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February 2nd 2010
UK government winds down pandemic ‘flu response but warns against complacency
'There is still considerable uncertainty about how the virus will behave over the coming months and years.'
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January 28th 2010
WHO defends pandemic management
Tells the Council of Europe there were ‘good reasons for the sense of priority and urgency’.
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January 4th 2010
Short-term school closures may worsen flu pandemics, University of Pittsburgh study finds
Closing schools for less than two weeks during a flu pandemic may actually increase infection rates.
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December 8th
‘Mobilizing Against Pandemic’
Study evaluates US public- and private-sector’s business continuity and mobile IT infrastructure standings.
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December 1st
CDC publishes guidance for emergency shelter management for the 2009-2010 flu season
Provides interim guidance specific for US-based emergency shelters used by displaced persons during a natural or man-made disaster during the 2009-2010 flu season.
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November 20th
Immune system of healthy adults may be better prepared than expected to fight 2009 H1N1 influenza virus
A new study shows that molecular similarities exist between the 2009 H1N1 influenza virus and other strains of seasonal H1N1 virus that have been circulating in the population since 1988. These results suggest that healthy adults may have a level of protective immune memory that can blunt the severity of infection caused by the 2009 H1N1 influenza virus. More details.
November 17th
‘Interim planning considerations for mass gatherings in the context of pandemic (H1N1)2009 influenza’
A new guidance document has been published by WHO.
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November 11th
US Department of Labor's OSHA provides workplace H1N1 influenza resources
OSHA has issued new fact sheets that employers and workers can use to promote safety during the current H1N1 influenza outbreak. The fact sheets inform employers and workers about ways to reduce the risk of exposure to the 2009 H1N1 virus at work. As new information about the 2009 H1N1 virus becomes available, these workplace fact sheets will be updated. http://www.osha.gov/h1n1
November 10th
‘Doing Business During an Influenza Pandemic’
New guidance document available from the University of Minnesota’s Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy.
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November 4th
Pandemic: Ukraine closes schools and bans public meetings
Euro News has reported that Ukraine is experiencing high levels of pandemic influenza. On Friday the government closed schools and banned public meetings for a three-week period.
October 27th
US National Emergency declared due to pandemic flu spread
The full text of President Obama’s statement.
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Swine Flu: Guidance for planners
Peak absence rate expectation reduced from 12 percent to 5 percent according to new UK DH document.
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Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada reminds firms about the importance of business continuity
IIROC Rule 17.16 requires members to have adequate business continuity plans.
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October 21st
UK starts pandemic vaccination programme
NHS Hospitals will begin vaccinating frontline healthcare workers and their patients who fall into at risk categories against swine flu from today (Wednesday 21st October). The vaccination programme will be rolled out over the next few weeks with GP surgeries receiving deliveries from Monday 26th October. Around two million frontline health and social care workers will be offered the vaccine. This group is at increased risk of infection and of transmitting that infection to susceptible patients. Protecting these people will help the NHS workforce to remain resilient and able to treat sick patients.
October 9th
Pandemic preparedness in the US workplace
Updated guidance on pandemic preparedness in the workplace from the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
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October 8th
North American governments discuss pandemic flu response
DHS Deputy Secretary discusses H1N1 coordination with Mexican and Canadian Counterparts in Mexico City.
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Singapore gets new Flu Pandemic Business Continuity Programme
Singapore Business Federation provides pandemic planning advice and resources; certification possible for pandemic plans.
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Small businesses lack workforce continuity plans for pandemic flu
A recent poll by LogMeIn, Inc. found that the majority of US small and medium businesses don't have a business continuity plan in place for the possibility of a flu outbreak. In September, LogMeIn polled 400 US-based business professionals on LinkedIn who own or work for companies with 10-5,000 employees to ask: "Does your company have a business continuity plan in place for a possible flu outbreak?" 59 percent of these companies said no plans yet existed.
October 6th
Many Canadian businesses are unprepared for pandemic flu
Ontario Chamber of Commerce survey finds that only 22 percent of respondents have a pandemic plan in place.
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September 30th:
Pandemic (H1N1) 2009 – WHO update 67
The WHO has issued its latest update about the global pandemic flu situation. As of 20 September 2009, there have been more than 300,000 laboratory confirmed cases of pandemic influenza H1N1, 3917 deaths, in 191 countries and territories reported to WHO. As more and more countries have stopped counting individual cases, particularly of milder illness, the case count is significantly lower than the actually number of cases that have occurred. http://www.who.int/csr/don/2009_09_25/en/index.html
Free flu planning resources from the CDC
This year’s CDC seasonal flu materials also include messaging to address the 2009 H1N1 flu recommendations. All materials are free for download—no printed versions are available. They may be printed on a standard office printer. http://www.cdc.gov/flu/freeresources/print.htm
September 29th:
UK police discuss pandemic planning
Police North West Region Business Continuity Managers Group meeting roundup.
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September 25th:
Pandemic preparedness tools for professionals
The US CDC has made a number of pandemic planning tools available.
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WHO Director-General re-states pandemic flu advice
Following the fifth meeting of the WHO Emergency Committee.
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Queensland set to roll out pandemic flu vaccines
Roll out of the new Panvax H1N1 pandemic flu vaccine will begin in Queensland from 30 September 2009, Acting Premier Paul Lucas has announced. Queensland has undertaken extensive planning for the vaccine’s roll-out, including prioritising vulnerable groups and facilitating appropriate distribution for the State’s decentralised population. Mr Lucas said Queensland would focus on vaccinating groups at higher risk of exposure as an immediate priority, including people most vulnerable to more severe outcomes and health care workers. http://www.health.qld.gov.au/swineflu/
September 18th:
Tripartite authorities issue pandemic flu update
A cross-market swine flu group has been formed to provide a forum for representative business continuity practitioners from across the UK financial sector.
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Joint Ministerial Committee commits to continued joint working on pandemic issues
The UK’s Joint Ministerial Committee met in a Plenary session in London this week. The meeting was chaired by the Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice, on behalf of the Prime Minister. The participants were the First Minister of Scotland, the Scottish Minister for Culture, External Affairs and the Constitution; the First Minister and Deputy First Minister for Wales; the First Minister and deputy First Minister for Northern Ireland and the Secretaries of State for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Ministers discussed issues of common interest, amongst which was pandemic flu. The Ministers committed to continue to work together in decision-making regarding pandemic ‘flu contingency planning.
September 16th:
Exercise Prometheus
The UK Department of Health has developed ‘Exercise Prometheus’ for the social care sector to assess and develop its resilience planning in readiness for a second wave of the pandemic swine flu. Designed as an 'off the shelf' package primarily for use by local authorities in partnership with their local providers of social care, the exercise has been developed from experience gained in previous pandemic influenza exercises. More details.
September 15th:
US gets new pandemic planning guide for small businesses
‘Planning for 2009 H1N1 Influenza: A Preparedness Guide for Small Business’.
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September 11th:
Pandemic planning and your supply chain
Denis Goulet provides a checklist.
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Harvard School of Public Health publishes the results of a survey of the state of pandemic planning in US businesses
How prepared are US businesses and what are the main weak areas?
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September 7th:
UK government changes pandemic planning assumptions
Worst case scenario will be not as bad as first thought.
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WHO supports fair access to influenza A (H1N1) vaccine
In an interview, Marie-Paule Kieny, director of the Initiative for Vaccine Research at the World Health Organization (WHO), explains how WHO is supporting countries’ efforts to protect their populations with vaccines that should become available as of this month. http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/87/9/09-030909/en/index.html
September 2nd:
Preparing for the second wave: lessons from current outbreaks
WHO Pandemic (H1N1) 2009 briefing note.
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August 28th:
Still no pandemic plan? Act now...
Helpful tips for developing a pandemic plan and for checking that your current plan has no gaps. By Andrew Fernandes. Read article
August 27th:
Influenza A (H1N1): EU Health Security Committee agrees statement on target and priority groups for vaccination
The European Union Health Security Committee and the Early Warning and Response authorities (HSC/EWRS) have adopted a policy statement proposed by the European Commission which outlines a shared European approach towards identifying target and priority groups for A H1N1 vaccination.
On the basis of current scientific evidence and taking into account guidance by the European Centre for Disease Control and the World Health Organisation, the HSC/EWRS statement recommends the following groups as constituting the first priority groups for A H1N1 vaccination:
* All persons from 6 months old with underlying chronic conditions (e.g. Chronic respiratory diseases; chronic cardiovascular diseases and persons with congenital or acquired immunodeficiency) starting with those with most severe symptoms
* Pregnant women
* Health care workers
Once these first priority groups have been vaccinated, the vaccination proceeds until the national targets have been met.
The statement stresses that it is the responsibility and mandate of each Member State to develop a vaccination strategy for Influenza A H1N1. Each country identifies national target groups which are defined as all those population groups where A H1N1 vaccination is recommended. In some cases, this may be the entire population and in other cases only specific groups. However, it is unlikely that the vaccine will be immediately available for all target groups at the same time and therefore, it is necessary to define priority groups.
More information
August 25th:
Evershed research provides a snapshot of pandemic planning in UK businesses
Research from international law firm Eversheds has highlighted the impact of the flu pandemic on UK businesses and the scale of contingencies in place for an Autumn escalation.
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UK government announces fast tracked pandemic flu research
The work will be led by research centres in Leicester, Nottingham, Newcastle, Edinburgh, Sheffield, Manchester and London.
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New WHO resources:
Call to Action
WHO, IFRC, UNSIC, OCHA and UNICEF, prompted by the humanitarian imperative, will work with partners such as the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, NGOs and civil society to support governments and communities to reduce the impact from the pandemic (H1N1) 2009. Read
Recommended use of antivirals
WHO Guidelines for Pharmacological Management of Pandemic (H1N1) 2009 Influenza and other Influenza Viruses Read
August 20th:
New Federal Guidelines aim to help US businesses with pandemic planning
Guidance designed to help employers prepare for the impact that seasonal and 2009 H1N1 influenza could have this fall and winter on employees and operations.
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August 19th:
Pandemic preparedness assessment tool launched
Free survey and telephone follow-up offered by Avalution Consulting to North American organizations.
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Swine Flu Communications: Preparing for the Fall Surge’
With the traditional flu season quickly approaching, US health officials are bracing for the return of H1N1 swine flu. Watch this on-demand webinar to find out how emergency management professionals from Rockford Health System and the Town of Durham, CT used emergency notification during the early stages of the pandemic, what they learned and how they are applying these lessons to better prepare for a swine flu surge in the fall. https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/843681977
August 14th:
EU Health Security Committee and the Early Warning and Response authorities agree pandemic policies
Unanimously adopts statements on school closures and travel advice.
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Pandemic plan testing – moving from art to science
Steve Dance reviews the Flu Pandemic Game which was recently made freely available by the UK Department of Health for plan testing and rehearsal.
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Government of Canada provides pandemic planning support to help ensure business continuity of small and medium size businesses
The Public Health Agency of Canada has awarded a contract worth $926,600 to the International Centre for Infectious Diseases to develop SMB pandemic planning resources.
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Pandemic flu having little impact on UK business
According to a survey of Institute of Directors members.
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July 30th: BCI publishes pandemic planning resource
The Business Continuity Institute has published a 16 page report on current thinking about pandemic planning.
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July 28th: Is your technology pandemic-ready?
This article discusses the human side of technology and the potential challenges that may arise during a pandemic and the absence of ICT staff and key knowledge holders.
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July 24th: WHO publishes new Pandemic (H1N1) 2009 briefing note
The number of human cases of pandemic (H1N1) 2009 is still increasing substantially in many countries, even in countries that have already been affected for some time. Many countries with widespread community transmission have moved to testing only samples of ill persons and have shifted surveillance efforts to monitoring and reporting of trends. It remains a top priority to determine which groups of people are at highest risk of serious disease so steps to best to protect them can be taken. Read the note.
July 17th: WHO publishes pandemic briefing
The 2009 influenza pandemic has spread internationally with unprecedented speed. In past pandemics, influenza viruses have needed more than six months to spread as widely as the new H1N1 virus has spread in less than six weeks.
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July 14th: WHO publishes recommendations on A(H1N1) vaccines
Health care and critical infrastructure sectors should be two of the priorities for first vaccinations.
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July 14th: $350 million grants available for US States’ pandemic preparedness
US HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius has announced the availability of $350 million in grants to help states and territories prepare for pandemic flu and the fall flu season.
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July 14th: UK Business Advisory Network for Flu update
The Business Continuity Institute attended a recent session of the above group, organized by the Cabinet Office to update representative organizations on the government’s pandemic response and planning. Read the notes of the meeting (PDF).
July 14th: UK government plans emergency change to self-certification sicknote scheme
The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) believes employers have nothing to fear from ‘emergency plans’ currently being considered by the UK Department for Work and Pensions to change the self-certification ‘sicknote’ rules from seven to 14 days. The regulations would have a sunset clause and would only remain law for six months unless it was agreed that they needed to be extended. Ben Willlmott, CIPD Senior Public Policy Adviser, commented: “The proposal to change the self-certification rules in the event of a serious flu pandemic is a pragmatic and temporary measure to reduce the burden on healthcare professionals and help prevent the spread of infection. Employers that manage absence and performance effectively and consistently have nothing to fear. The vast majority of absence is genuine and only a very small proportion of employees will seek to use this change in the self-certification rules to ‘pull a sickie’
July 10th: US pandemic summit roundup
July 9 saw the first national Flu Summit in the US. The awareness raising and planning oriented event was strongly focussed on preparedness for the fall flu season.
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July 9th: H1N1 Tamiflu resistance concerns examined
The WHO has announced that it is examining cases of H1N1 Tamiflu resistance which have become evident.
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July 3rd: The White House announces H1N1 Flu Preparedness Summit
Will be held on July 9, 2009 at the Natcher Conference Center at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland.
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July 2nd: The UK government is expected to make an announcement today about the current status of pandemic flu in the country and changes in the management of the situation. A press conference has been scheduled for 13.45 where Andy Burnham, Secretary of State for Health and Professor Sir Liam Donaldson, Chief Medical Officer for England, will brief journalists on the developments.
June 12th: 7.00 GMT Text of yesterday's WHO press conference and announcement
June 11th: 17.15 GMT The main points from a WHO press conference given after the decision was taken to upgrade from pandemic phase five to phase six:
- Government focus should now be on treatment of cases rather than testing and monitoring.
- WHO says that border closures and restrictions of international travel are unnecessary.
- Guidance
has been given to governments, which will disseminate this as soon as possible.
June 11th: 14.15 GMT WHO emergency committee decides to upgrade H1N1 alert to level six: full pandemic status.
Assessing the severity of an influenza pandemic
WHO has published a new document which looks at how the severity of a pandemic influenza virus is assessed and what has now been learnt about the H1N1 virus strain causing the current outbreaks. Read the document.
Swine influenza is now ‘Influenza A(H1N1)’
The World Health Organization has decided to use Influenza A(H1N1) rather than ‘swine influenza’ as the official name for the novel influenza virus which is rapidly spreading around the world.
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CDC situation update page
An update on the current situation is available at http://www.cdc.gov/flu/swine/investigation.htm This page will be updated daily at 3 p.m. ET until further notice.
European situation update page
European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control
Send your reports
Business continuity managers are invited to email details of their current actions in relation to this incident to editor@continuitycentral.com for publication on this page.
The Flu Pandemic Game: a business continuity training resource
The UK Department of Health has made the above resource freely available.
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The keys to effective pandemic communications
Recommendations on how best to communicate during severe pandemic conditions.
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No time for complacency in pandemic planning: Aon
Influenza viruses are notoriously unpredictable and the H1N1 may mutate to become more severe at any time.
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Protecting Our Employees: Pandemic Influenza Preparedness and the Federal Workforce
The US Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
Subcommittee on Oversight of Government Management, the Federal Workforce, and the District of Columbia is to hold a hearing with the above title. Taking place on June 16, it will review preparedness efforts in the federal government to protect and plan for a pandemic influenza outbreak. More details.
Pandemic phase six: what do business continuity managers do next?
Many pandemic plans have build in escalation steps which are meant to kick in when a phase six pandemic alert is reached, however given the relatively low virulence of the virus and the current status of infection levels should BC managers reconsider their plans? Continuity Central asked various business continuity experts to give their views...
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Pandemic planning actions surveyed
The results of a survey into business response to the Influenza A H1N1 outbreak.
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Pandemic: don’t be complacent
The H1N1 virus ‘may have given us a grace period’, but ’no one can say whether this is just the calm before the storm,’: WHO Director-General.
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ISO report highlights best practices in the use of fever screening equipment as a tool in pandemic preparedness
ISO/TR 13154:2009 is available from ISO national member institutes.
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Pandemic planning webinars and podcasts
Various companies and organizations have set up pandemic planning webinars and made podcasts available. This page provides a list of these.
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Pandemics – have we really learnt anything?
Leslie T Whittet highlights lessons that both business continuity managers and governments should be learning from the Influenza A(H1N1) outbreak.
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Business continuity providers’ statements on pandemic response
SunGard and ICM have both issued statements covering their policies for continued service during a pandemic.
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Pandemic business continuity planning – the time to act is now
A comprehensive checklist by Dr. Jim Kennedy.
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WHO raises pandemic alert level to phase 5
The World Health Organization has raised the alert over the spread of swine flu to phase 5.
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Pandemic preparedness: key questions your chief executive will be asking
To anticipate the questions that your chief executive will be asking, Malcolm Cornish has drawn up a list of questions to which you would be well advised to have some clear answers.
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Nine-steps for pandemic planning
Advice from the TABB Group.
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Face masks : when and when not to use them in pandemic situations
Advice from the UK Health Protection Agency.
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Pandemic plans trigger difficult legal questions
Managing sick and concerned workers, navigating quarantine barriers and liabilities are just a few of the impact areas facing managers, says a Pillsbury attorney.
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Pandemic level raised to four
The WHO Emergency Committee held its second meeting about swine influenza on 27 April 2009 and decided that it was appropriate to raise the pandemic alert level from three to four.
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Pandemic plan sense check
Link Associates has published a useful checklist for companies wishing to review existing pandemic contingency plans.
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UK Resilience Swine Flu RSS feeds
You can now find all the latest Swine Flu news and updates from the UK government delivered to a single page on the UK Resilience website via RSS feeds. Go there.
Directgov launches RSS feed on Swine Flu
Directgov the UK government information service has launched a RSS feed on swine flu to provide updates on the topic.
UK FSA statement for firms on Swine Flu
1 May: In light of the recent outbreak of influenza in Mexico and subsequent reports from the World Health Organisation, the FSA believes that regulated firms should be assessing their contingency plans to consider what steps they may need to take to address possible issues. The FSA is already contacting the 'high impact' firms including infrastructure providers that it regulates to establish whether the influenza outbreak is affecting any aspects of their business.
Tánaiste Coughlan re-launches a guide to help businesses prepare business continuity plans for a ‘flu pandemic’
Mary Coughlan, Irish Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, has reminded the enterprise sector that a user friendly and practical guide entitled ‘Business Continuity Planning - Responding to an Influenza Pandemic’ is freely available. Re-launching the Guide, the Tánaiste said “In light of the growing concerns about the risk of a worldwide flu pandemic, and with the increase by the World Health Organisation of the pandemic alert to Level 5, the time is now opportune for businesses who do not yet have continuity plans in place to prepare them, and for those who do have plans to revisit them”. Business Continuity Planning - Responding to an Influenza Pandemic is available here as a PDF. A checklist to assist businesses in the planning process is available separately from here.
INTERPOL warns of criminals exploiting swine flu outbreak
INTERPOL has warned of criminals potentially exploiting the swine flu outbreak through spam emails and websites selling illegal, unlicensed or fake medicines. Read more
Swine influenza frequently asked questions
WHO has published a factsheet which looks at the following questions:
• What is swine influenza?
• What are the implications for human health?
• Where have human cases occurred?
• How do people become infected?
• Is it safe to eat pork meet and products?
• What about the pandemic risk?
• Is there a human vaccine to protect swine influenza?
• What drugs are available for treatment?
Read at: http://www.who.int/csr/swine_flu/swine_flu_faq_26april.pdf
Information and links
Ministry of Health of Mexico
Pan American Health Organization (PAHO)
US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
UK pandemic flu response information
UK Health Protection Agency
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General pandemic planning
US pandemic planning
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•Date:26th April 2009• Region: US/World •Type: Article •Topic: Pandemic planning
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UPDATED April 13th 2010
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