Word: tamiflu
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...deaths from the flu next winter. To prevent hospital overcrowding, the NHS is planning to allow people who think they might have swine flu to call a telephone line and answer a few questions; those whose answers indicate they might have it will be allowed to receive the antiviral Tamiflu or have a "flu friend" pick it up for them. (The system is available only in England for now - sorry, Scotland.) (See the top five swine...
...says parents have been confused by what they see as the conflicting approaches of health officials in responding to swine flu. Until July 2, some areas of the country had been taking a containment approach - testing all suspected cases, closing schools with confirmed cases and offering the antiviral drug Tamiflu as a prophylactic to those who'd come into close contact with suspected cases - while certain hot spots, like London and Glasgow, abandoned the containment strategy. "The truth of the matter is, either you should get it now or try to avoid getting it - you can't have it both...
...Whether the confusion was justified or not, Britain announced on July 2 that it was abandoning containment across the entire country, choosing instead to treat with Tamiflu only those who are ill. Health Secretary Burnham said the emergency measure was part of the government's pandemic plan and was meant to relieve pressure on the National Health Service as the U.K. braces for what epidemiologists predict could soon be 100,000 new cases a day. Several other countries, including the U.S. and Australia, have moved to a similar strategy. (Read "Psst! Want a Cure for H1N1? Swine Flu Scams...
...difference is in the health-care setting, protecting caregivers from sick patients - both in hospitals and at home - and a national shortage could impact these front-line responders most severely. "Much of what is contained in the Strategic National Stockpile are vaccines and medicines," including 50 million doses of Tamiflu, says CDC spokesperson Von Roebuck, noting that more medical supplies must be purchased...
...Africa, where many nations lack pandemic plans altogether, even though high rates of HIV infection there would probably worsen the toll of flu. But there are international models the U.S. can follow. Hong Kong was ravaged by SARS in 2003, but today the city has 20 million courses of Tamiflu--three times its population. (The U.S. Federal Government has enough for just one-sixth of the population, with additional stockpiles held by states.) Holiday camps on the fringes of Hong Kong have been set up to serve as isolation wards, and the city has invested in epidemiology labs and more...