# 3093
Phase 5 is characterized by human-to-human spread of the virus into at least two countries in one WHO region. While most countries will not be affected at this stage, the declaration of Phase 5 is a strong signal that a pandemic is imminent and that the time to finalize the organization, communication, and implementation of the planned mitigation measures is short.
No doubt, today’s declaration of a Global Pandemic Emergency (Level 5) by the World Health Organization (WHO) will drive a lot of people to this site, and others looking for information about what all of this really means.
There are a lot of things we don’t know yet, and may not know for months, about this virus.
While some early reports have suggested that this virus may not produce a lot of severe illness, viruses mutate, and the pandemic we start out with may not be the pandemic we end up with.
Unfortunately, it does produce severe symptoms in some people. And some people have died.
But we should remember that every year, 30,000+ Americans die from complications of influenza – and globally that number is in the hundreds of thousands.
Even seasonal influenza is a serious illness.
A pandemic will probably mean an escalation of that death toll – but by how much . . . we can’t say.
We may be talking double, triple . . . or maybe more. And a pandemic could linger on for months, or even a year or longer.
Right now, before the virus really begins to move through our communities, you need to be making sure that your family, your neighborhood, and your business are prepared to deal with it.
You have time to act, but not time to procrastinate.
First, you need to get and stay informed.
The CDC has a Swine Flu website at http://www.cdc.gov/swineflu/ and that is your best source of accurate information.
For analysis and advice, without hype and sensationalism, I can heartily recommend the bloggers in my blog roll on my sidebar. They aren’t trying to sell advertisement, or run up the number of hits on their sites, and most are uniquely qualified to write about pandemic influenza.
Second, you need to be instructing your family on good `flu hygiene’.
With no vaccine for months, and the possibility that antivirals may lose their effectiveness over time, things like handwashing, covering coughs, social distancing, and staying home if you are sick become all the more important.
You should be ensuring that you have sufficient emergency supplies on hand to stay at home, without making a grocery store run, for at least 2-weeks.
That means food, medicine, and essential supplies.
If you haven’t downloaded Dr. Grattan Woodson's Home Treatment of Influenza booklet on treating influenza, you need to do so now, and lay in the supplies he recommends.
You should plan to visit the HHS’s excellent pandemicflu.gov site, and spend some time going over their recommendations for Individual and Family Preparedness.
If you own or run a business, you need to be working immediately to implement a pandemic plan. Two important resources are:
Guidance on Preparing Workplaces For an Influenza Pandemic
My colleagues and I will continue to provide you with the most up to date news, and sensible advice, possible. This is serious, but it isn’t the end of the world . . .
What does a Pandemic Level 5 really mean to you?
It means it’s time to get prepared.
Now . . . take a deep breath. Formulate a plan. And get started.
