This morning I had the opportunity to be a presenter at the Barrow County Pandemic Flu (H1N1) Briefing for Department Directors and Elected Officials. The purpose of the meeting was to provide an update on the current state of the H1N1, vaccination plans and other issues relative to H1N1 in Barrow County. Presenters included Jimmy Terrell, chairman of the Local Emergency Planning Committee; Steven Dumpert, PIO Northeast Georgia Public Health; Missy Chalker, RN, Barrow County Health Department; myself and Brent Burish, COO Barrow Regional Medical Center.
I will not attempt to summarize everything that was said in the briefing but only those pieces of information most relevant, in my opinion, to Barrow County Schools. The information presented below is my best interpretation of the information that was presented at the briefing.
Steven noted that the label pandemic refers to the spread of an illness not the severity. To date H1N1 has been very similar to seasonal flu in terms of severity. While H1N1 as a type of flu has been around in humans for some time the particular sub-type that is currently concerning us is new. This sub-type is being referred to as Novel H1N1 and it is a recombination of 4 strains of H1N1. Humans currently have very little to no immunity to Novel H1N1.
In terms of vaccinations, the production of seasonal flu vaccine has been reduced in order to devote resources to increase the production of a vaccine for H1N1. This vaccine is currently undergoing clinical trials and cannot be released to the public until the FDA deems the vaccine safe. Currently there are too many unknowns in the clinical tests. It is likely that there will be an approved vaccine at some point in the future.
Everyone should prepare to be infected with the flu this year. Everyone is also encouraged to get the flu vaccine. Do not wait to get the flu vaccine when it is available because the chances of the virus mutating increases if a person is infected with both seasonal flu and Novel H1N1 flu at the same time. Most likely anyone who gets the flu at the moment is going to have H1N1 but H1N1 is no more serious at the present time than is seasonal flu. Employers should be prepared to deal with extensive absences. People who have been in contact with H1N1 infection and not become sick, and there are many examples, have developed some immunity. The virus can survive for 2 – 8 hours or more on surfaces and it prefers surfaces that are cool and dry. Frequent cleaning of surfaces and hand washing is recommended.
Missy told the group that seasonal flu vaccines were arriving today and the health department will start rolling out vaccines on Monday. People interested in getting the seasonal flu vaccine can walk in to the health department between 8-12 and 1-4 on regular work days.
I reported on H1N1 related activities within the school system including the fact that we have been engaged in pandemic flu planning for a few years now. We have participated in a community-wide drill related to Pandemic Flu and have two representatives who are active on the Barrow County Pandemic Flu Planning Committee. We continuously monitor the CDC website for changes to the guidance for schools and follow the guidance provided. That guidance has not changed during the 2009-2010 school year but is different from the guidance the CDC issued in spring 2009. We also maintain regular contact with Susan Kristal, Nurse Manager Barrow County Health Department, as our point of contact with public health. We continue to emphasis flu prevention activities which include washing hands thoroughly and frequently, covering coughs and sneezes, staying home when sick for at least 24 hours after the fever breaks, and more frequent cleaning of surfaces. Each of our schools have a Pandemic Flu plan that is updated as needed. We are also monitoring staff and student attendance and will report to the local health department anytime absences reach a 10% threshold or an unusual pattern develops. I also told the group about this blog as a resource for information.
Brent Burish reported the Barrow Regional Medical Center is as prepared as any hospital can be. They partner with a network of other hospitals which would allow them to call in additional resources if an outbreak was localized to a particular area. Hospital staff have participated in multiple exercises to test their plan and preparedness.
Ken Greene
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