Fortunately swine don't fly, though people can and do (in airplanes).
I promised you about a week ago that I would try to help you stay abreast of what's been happening with the H1N1 Influenza. But my ethics work here has kept me sidetracked. (So I've been a dreadful failure in keeping you informed -- official numbers are only part of the story.) I just sent another memo to a colleague this morning, raising issues about the health and safety of people who work during a pandemic. In the SARS outbreak in Toronto a few years ago, a significant number of deaths were among health care professionals. (Just as in 9/11 in Manhattan, a lot of police and firefighters died in the line of duty.)
One of the major concerns in any pandemic relates to the number of health care professionals who will show up for work. There are research numbers which suggest that about 50 per cent would stay home. Talk about a health care system being overwhelmed by that loss of employees!
One of the challenges of emergency work is protection of workers. Back in the days when I was a firefighter, I sometimes had to work above the fire (a particularly dangerous place) looking for people who might be trapped or injured, so we could get them to safety. Back them I had a heavy canvas, rubber-lined "turnout" coat, boots, a helmet, and self-contained breathing apparatus. And given that level of protection, I was reasonably confident doing what I had to do, even thought I was in a risky situation.
The biggest fear in a pandemic is that health care workers will not get the protective gear they need in order to do their jobs safely. That puts them, and their patients, and families, and, ultimately, the community, at risk. How much risk? I'm not sure. But at least in principle, this is a significant problem.
So we have a legitimate ethical challenge. Workers say, "Yes, we're committed to our profession and our patients, but how can you expect us to work when we don't have the protection we need?"
I'll let you think about that one.
Thursday, 7 May 2009
2 comments:
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Here in the US, we seem to be getting the message that the H1N1 virus isn't half as bad as initially thought. Isn't that the case?
ReplyDeleteYou are right, Sonia. The last time I checked, there were just over a thousand cases, and counting, in The United States, with two confirmed deaths. The challenge with influenza is that the stuff evolves or mutates, from season to season, or within a season. It is also true that flu tends to come in waves. The big question is: What will this swine-bird-human flu form "look" like when school starts up in September? September would be about the normal time for a second wave.
ReplyDeleteAs for me and most people I know, we're living life as usual. Medical people, however, are getting more wary. With good reason.
I actually have two more stories on this, which I'll post as soon as I have the energy.