H1N1 Influenza Update #25 (B) - WHO Info

MedPrep Consulting Group LLC Dr. Stuart B. Weiss INFLUENZA UPDATE #25 (B) WHO PANDEMIC ALERT LEVEL 5 June 9, 2009 SUBSCRIBE: Click button at bottom or send email to alert@MedPrepGroup.com WHO Update I know you recently received an update but today's WHO press briefing was very interesting and yielded some new information. The press briefing was held with Dr. Keiji Fukuda, the WHO Asst. Director General for Health Safety and Environment. The two points he made were: Changing Pandemic Phase Definitions: The decision was made to stay with the current Pandemic Phase definitions but to augment any announcements on phase changes with additional information on severity and how countries should tailor their responses. Moving the Phase 6: Today Dr. Fukuda said that the WHO is "very close" to declaring a Pandemic (Phase 6) due to activity in Australia. In Victoria, Australia, there are the expected outbreaks in schools and institutions and additional outbreaks in people who are not students or involved with the institutions. This signifies community level activity and meets the definition of a pandemic (sustained community level outbreaks in two WHO regions). HOUSEKEEPING ITEM: If you get this Alert through a mailing list and not directly from us, subscribe by clicking the button at the bottom or send an email to alert@MedPrepGroup.com ANALYSIS: Don't be caught off guard when the WHO moves to Phase 6 in the next day or two. Remember that this doesn't mean anything about severity or worsening of the disease in any way. It just speaks to spread, which was the original intent of the pandemic phases in the first place. With that said, watch for unexpected reactions by some governments around the globe. ADVICE: Brief your executives on what a move to Phase 6 would mean for your company. Virtual Medical Director Program: If you don't have a corporate medical director, we'll be your medical director. Our Virtual Medical Director service provides you with 24 hour access to physicians and experts trained in emergency medicine, disaster medicine, business continuity, occupational health and mental health crisis management to give you situation updates, analysis and advice. Contact us for further information. Not preparing now would be a serious mistake should things worsen quickly. If you have any questions or concerns that we can help you with, please feel free to reach out to me. My email is: sweiss@MedPrepGroup.com MedPrep Consulting Group is internationally recognized as a leader in pandemic, disaster and business continuity planning, training and exercising. We have resources and expertise that you can count on. Ask us about our Virtual Medical Director Program. Dr. Stuart Weiss is the CEO of MedPrep Consulting Group. For more information, visit www.MedPrepGroup.com Stuart Weiss, MD, CBCP MedPrep Consulting Group LLC