1.
What are the drawbacks in the present
Health Systems that these are unable to
deal with the threat posed by H1N1 virus?
Answers
Answer:
The federal pandemic influenza plan predicts that 30% of the population could be infected. The impact of this pandemic would quickly overwhelm the public health and health-care delivery systems in the U.S. and throughout the world. Surge capacity for staffing, availability of drugs and supplies, and alternate means to provide care must be included in detailed plans that are tested and drilled ahead of time. Accurate information on the disease must be made available to health-care staff and the public to reduce fear. Spokespersons must provide clear, consistent messages about the disease, including actions to be taken to contain its spread and treat the afflicted. Home care will be especially important, as hospitals will be quickly overwhelmed. Staff must be prepared ahead of time to assure their ability and willingness to report to work, and public health must plan ahead to adequately confront ethical issues that will arise concerning the availability of treatment resources. The entire community must work together to meet the challenges posed by an epidemic. Identification and resolution of these challenges and issues are essential to achieve adequate public health preparedness.
Explanation:
Answer:
The federal pandemic influenza plan predicts that 30% of the population could be infected. The impact of this pandemic would quickly overwhelm the public health and health-care delivery systems in the U.S. and throughout the world. Surge capacity for staffing, availability of drugs and supplies, and alternate means to provide care must be included in detailed plans that are tested and drilled ahead of time. Accurate information on the disease must be made available to health-care staff and the public to reduce fear. Spokespersons must provide clear, consistent messages about the disease, including actions to be taken to contain its spread and treat the afflicted. Home care will be especially important, as hospitals will be quickly overwhelmed. Staff must be prepared ahead of time to assure their ability and willingness to report to work, and public health must plan ahead to adequately confront ethical issues that will arise concerning the availability of treatment resources. The entire community must work together to meet the challenges posed by an epidemic. Identification and resolution of these challenges and issues are essential to achieve adequate public health preparedness.
The federal pandemic influenza plan and public health experts predict that should the H5N1 influenza virus mutate in such a way that human-to-human transmission can easily occur, approximately 30% of the U.S. population could develop the disease.1 An influenza pandemic of some type could occur in the next few years. It may be H5N1 or some other subtype, which could translate into approximately 90 million cases nationwide.
Depending on the severity of the pandemic—whether it is moderate like the 1957 and 1968 strains, or severe like the 1918 strain—the federal plan projects the following: 45 million people in need of outpatient care; between 1 million and 10 million people in need of hospitalization; 130,000 to 1.5 million people in need of intensive care; 65,000 to 750,000 patients requiring mechanical ventilation; and deaths numbering from 200,000 to 2 million. In recent flu seasons, it has been reported that hospital emergency departments have reached their limits and that there is little room for a surge in patients in either emergency rooms or inpatient beds.2,3
A grim picture is predicted of a significant surge in the need for additional health-care resources, which our nation currently lacks. It is expected that there would be serious shortages of health-care facilities, equipment, pharmaceuticals, and personnel. The public health system and hospitals will be quickly overrun if even some of the estimated number of people become sick. It is important to realize that victims of this disease will, by default, need to be cared for in home-care settings, and we must plan accordingly.