Service SA - Pandemic Influenza

Pandemic Influenza

Health experts and governments around the world are concerned about one of the current strains of Avian Influenza (commonly know as ‘bird flu’) and in particular from the H5N1 strain. The concern is that the H5N1 strain may mutate and be capable of passing “person to person”, and so trigger a human influenza pandemic which could spread easily and is capable of causing a high number of deaths and sickness.

The government’s overall strategy for responding to an emerging pandemic is to plan a number of measures to:

	Preparation
	FAQs
	Health Information
	Business Continuity
	Bird Information

Delay the arrival of the pandemic in Australia
Contain or slow the spread of the pandemic virus once it reaches Australia. Social Distancing (1 metre between people) and personal hygiene management strategies will be encouraged.

The Pandemic Influenza could have a dramatic impact on South Australians’ health and cause economic and social disruption.

Social disruption may be widespread
- Usual services such as hospitals, banks shops, restaurants, government offices may be disputed due to staff absenteeism and social distancing strategies
- Social distancing advice will be given to avoid public gatherings, recreational events in order to reduce infection spread
Schools, Universities and Child Care Centres may need to close as a social distancing strategy and to reduce infection spread.

Transportation services may be disrupted - it is anticipated that services may be affected and getting to work may be difficult and there will be traffic delays

Preparing - consider planning your household to always have food and essential supplies for a 7 day period. Read through this site to determine what emergency plan you can put into place.

Preparation

To prepare for a Pandemic Influenza, Federal and State Governments in Australia and organisations around the world have developed plans to deal with such a situation. These include:

The Australian Government's Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet has developed the National Action Plan for Human Influenza Pandemic
The Australian Government's Department of Health and Ageing has developed the Australian Health Management Plan for Pandemic Influenza
The South Australian Government's Department of Health has developed a Draft Pandemic Influenza Operational Plan
The World Health Organization realised the Global Influenza Preparedness Plan in 2005.
The Australian Government's Department of Health and Ageing has developed a Practical Guide for Medical Practitioners
The Australian Government's Department of Health and Ageing has developed a Practical Information for Health Care Workers

FAQs

You probably have a number of questions or concerns about a Pandemic Influenza. There's a number of FAQ pages available from the Department of Health:

Health Information

Health information about Pandemic Influenza is provided by:

The Australian Government's Department of Health and Ageing
The South Australian Government's Department of Health
The South Australian Government's Infection Control Service

Business Continuity

Businesses will need to consider what impact a human influenza pandemic might have on their business. The Australian Government's Department of Industry, Tourism and Resources have several resources:

A practical and comprehensive Business Continuity Guide for Australian Businesses
A Kit for Small Businesses
Standards Australia Publications on Business Continuity Management and Risk Management standard available for purchase.

Bird Information

With outbreaks of bird flu occuring throughout the world, people working, handling or living with birds may want to know more about the situation.

The South Australian Government's Primary Industries and Resources SA provides information about