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The pandemic of 2009, while not exactly a Stephen King scale catastrophe, most certainly presented challenges to the medical community. Emergency rooms, ICUs, and pediatric hospitals were heavily impacted during the recent fall wave.
Lisa Schnirring of CIDRAP News has a detailed look at how the pandemic preparedness team at Children's Hospitals and Clinics of Minnesota dealt with the crisis.
This is not only a good read, it is an important reminder that the H1N1 virus levied a heavy burden at times on patients, their families, and on the medical community tasked with caring for them.
Follow the link to read the article in its entirety.
Fall flu wave tested pediatric hospitals with tough choices
Lisa Schnirring
Staff Writer
Jan 5, 2010 (CIDRAP News) – In early August 2009, when the pandemic virus started tearing through southern states where schools had already started, the pandemic preparedness team at Children's Hospitals and Clinics of Minnesota felt a sense of foreboding that the virus was poised to strike the area a second time.
Pediatric hospitals throughout the United States have been at ground zero during both waves of the pandemic. The patients they care for are among the groups at highest risk for complications from the pandemic virus—young people with chronic health conditions such as asthma, diabetes, neuromuscular disorders, and forms of cancer.
Throughout the pandemic, communities have relied heavily on children's hospitals as high-profile sources of flu information. When the vaccine made its debut in October, public health officials took advantage of such hospitals' unique ability to reach many of the highest-risk groups with the first doses.
