Avian Flu Pandemic Preparedness at the University of West Florida

1. Avian Flu Pandemic Preparedness at the University of West Florida Jim Hurd, Student Affairs Peter Robinson, Administrative Affairs

2. Some History • Pandemic: An infectious disease epidemic that affects people worldwide or over an extensive geographical area. • There were three influenza pandemics in the 20th Century.

3. Recipe for a Pandemic • Condition One • –Novel virus • •Condition Two • Crosses species • Humans, pigs, tigers, cats • •Condition Three • Efficient, persistent human-to-human transmission • Reassortment • Mutation

4. New Influenza Subtypes • H3N2 • 1968 • Hong Kong Flu • 34,000 US deaths • H1N1 • 1918 • Spanish Flu • >500,000 US deaths

5. New Influenza Subtypes • H5N1 • 2003 • Avian Flu * • Worldwide, 98 deaths out of 177 confirmed infections as of 3-13-06

6. Susceptible Human Population • Humans have no pre-existing immunity to novel strains of influenza. • Every time the virus enters a new host, the potential for mutations is present.

7. WHO confirmed cases of H5N1 as of 3-13-06

9. “No disease the world has ever known even remotely resembles the great influenza epidemic of 1918. Presumed to have begun when sick farm animals infected soldiers in Kansas, spreading and mutating into a lethal strain as troops carried it to Europe, it exploded across the world with unequaled ferocity and speed. It killed more people in twenty weeks than AIDS has killed in twenty years; it killed more people in a year than the plagues of the Middle Ages killed in a century. Victims bled from the ears and nose, turned blue from lack of oxygen, suffered aches that felt like bones being broken, and died. In the United States, where bodies were stacked without coffins on trucks, nearly seven times as many people died of influenza as in the First World War.”

10. Historical Facts - 1918 • Death Toll Worldwide: 40 - 100 Million • Death Toll US: 500,000 • Normal Season Flu Death Toll: 36,000 • Most Susceptible Population Age: 15-34 • Number of Flu-Orphans in NYC: 21,000

11. Historical Facts • 1957 Asian Flu -- US Deaths 69,800 • 1968 Hong Kong Flu – US Deaths 34,000 • Pandemic Flu Scares: • 1976 Swine Flu • 1977 Russian Flu • 1997 -1999 Avian Flu • Non-Flu Scare: SARS Multi-Country Outbreak

12. “Let me be clear. It is only a matter of time before we discover H5N1 in America. The migration patterns of the wild fowl that carry the virus make its appearance here almost inevitable.” Secretary Michael Leavitt, HHS 13 March 2006

14. Current Situation -- Avian Flu: • 2003-2006 Outbreaks in Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Japan, Laos, South Korea, Thailand, Vietnam, Europe, Southwest Asia and Africa • Bird to Human transmission still very rare • Human to Human transmission –one WHO confirmed case

17. World Health Organization Pandemic Alert Rating

18. Florida Department of Health • Once the pandemic takes hold, we have to assume that there will be little to No Help from the national or state level – not just for days, but for weeks, and perhaps months. • We have to assume that every county and every community will be pretty much on its own in an influenza pandemic. • County Health Department will have ICS Lead.

19. Department of Health Planning Assumptions • Establish realistic goals based on experience and discussion. Planning is based on: • The historical record • Rapid world-wide spread – Carnegie Mellon U • Health care systems overload • Medical supplies inadequate – SNS Mock Activation • Economic and social disruption • Short window for critical decision making • Influenza will spread quickly in a community. 0.01%-1% attack rate in one week. • 1918 influenza crossed U.S. in 3-4 weeks.

20. Starting Point • Background work in progress • Establish a Planning Task Force to ensure all areas represented in the planning process • Identify essential functions and personnel • Articulate duties and delegate responsibilities • Educate campus about pandemic flu and our plan

21. Issues • Classes • Student absenteeism • Alternate methods for completing course work – ITS? • Tuition refunds • Traveling Faculty and Students • Resident and International students • Athletic events - on campus and away games

22. Issues • Public events – FOG, high school dances, weddings in conference center • Food supplies – Chartwells • Security • Research • Maintenance

23. Issues • Admissions • Financial Aid • Procurement • Insurance • Payroll • Communications – external & internal • Recovery Plan

24. Taskforce Functional RepresentationPer ACHA Planning Recommendations • Academic Affairs • International Programs • Academic Activities • Research • Enrollment Services

25. Taskforce Functional RepresentationPer ACHA Planning Recommendations • Administrative Affairs • Business & Auxiliary Services • Financial Services • Procurement & Contracts • Facilities Management • Police Department • Environmental Health and Safety

26. Taskforce Functional RepresentationPer ACHA Planning Recommendations • Student Affairs • Student Health Services • Housing and Residence Life • SGA

27. Taskforce Functional RepresentationPer ACHA Planning Recommendations • President’s Division • Marketing Communications • Human Resources • ITS