( June
11, 2009 update)
The Associated Press this morning is reporting
that the “World Health Organization told its member nations it was
declaring a swine flu pandemic Thursday — the first global flu epidemic in 41
years — as infections climbed in the United States, Europe, Australia, South
America and elsewhere. In a statement sent to member countries, WHO said it
decided to raise the pandemic warning level from phase 5 to 6 — its highest
alert — after holding an emergency meeting on swine flu with its experts. The
long-awaited pandemic decision is scientific confirmation that a new flu virus
has emerged and is quickly circling the globe. It will trigger drugmakers to
speed up production of a swine flu vaccine and prompt governments to devote
more money toward efforts to contain the virus.” There will be a Live
webcast of the WHO press conference at Noon EDT today, presumably to announce the change in pandemic status. What a
shift to Phase 6 of the pandemic warning level will mean to Flight Attendants
is unclear at this time, but stay tuned for further updates as the situation
unfolds.
Additional Links for Further
Information:
o World
Health Organization (WHO) Influenza A(H1N1)
o One-stop access to U.S.
Government swine, avian and pandemic flu information
o CDC: H1N1 Flu Clinical and Public Health
Guidance
o OSHA: Pandemic
Influenza
o NIOSH: Occupational
Health Issues Associated with H1N1 Influenza Virus (Swine Flu)
o New England Journal of
Medicine: H1N1 Influenza Center
o Center for
Infectious Disease Research & Policy (U of Minn. ):
Swine
Influenza
( June
8, 2009 update)
The WHO today issued Influenza
A(H1N1) - update 45 : “As of 06:00 GMT , 8
June 2009 , 73
countries have officially reported 25,288 cases of influenza A(H1N1) infection,
including 139 deaths.” Last week, on June
5, 2009 , the U.S.
CDC issued new Interim
Guidance for Airlines Regarding Flight Crews Arriving from Domestic and
International Areas Affected by Swine Influenza . This guidance offers
several useful recommendations for dealing with potentially infected passengers
and should be shared with your carrier’s inflight operations and medical
departments. For example, ”[c]rew members should wear impermeable, disposable
gloves onboard aircraft if they need to have direct contact with potentially
contaminated surfaces such as airplane seats, tray tables, and lavatories used
by ill passengers;” when “having close contact with an ill person [crew
members] should keep their interactions with the ill person as brief as
possible and may choose to wear a facemask or a N95 respirator on a voluntary
basis;” and “flight deck crew should ensure that the aircraft air
conditioning/ventilation system stays on until all passengers and crew have
disembarked in order to maximize continued removal of virus particles from the
cabin air.”
( May
20, 2009
update) The Association of Flight Attendants-CWA
(AFA-CWA) testified May 20th on Capitol Hill regarding concerns that
arose after a recent public health emergency and the summer travel outlook for
this year. The U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee on Aviation
conducted the hearing which focused on aviation consumer issues and emergency
contingency planning during public health emergencies.
( May
8, 2009
update) At this time, the WHO has NOT updated the Influenza A (H1N1) pandemic
alert from phase 5 to phase 6. Here is the latest on the current
situation per the WHO: As of 16:00 GMT, 8 May
2009, 25 countries have officially reported 2500 cases of influenza A (H1N1)
infection
( April
30, 2009
update) An update to the AFA Swine Flu bulletin is now available (the April
27, 2009
version has been retired). This update includes the latest list of countries
with confirmed cases, and notes that the US
now has one flu-caused fatality.
( April
29, 2009
update) The CDC has posted two guidance documents of interest to airline crews:Interim
Guidance to Assist Airline Flight Deck and Cabin Crew in Identifying Passengers
Who May Have Swine Influenza Interim Guidance for Airlines Regarding Flight Crews Arriving
from Domestic and International Areas Affected by Swine Influenza CDC
Swine Flu guidance page for continuing updates to these two documents, as
well as any other documents of interest that may be posted in the coming days
and weeks.
( April
29, 2009
WHO Update) Level of influenza pandemic alert raised
from phase 4 to 5 29
April 2009 -- Based on assessment of all available
information and following several expert consultations, Dr Margaret Chan, WHO's
Director-General raised the current level of influenza pandemic alert from
phase 4 to 5. She stated that all countries should immediately activate their
pandemic preparedness plans. At this stage, effective and essential measures
include heightened surveillance, early detection and treatment of cases, and
infection control in all health facilities. April
28, 2009
update) AFA has written a letter to Dr. Fred Tilton, the FAA Federal Air Surgeon,
requesting that the FAA issue an emergency order to all air carriers with
specific steps to help reduce the risk of Swine flu transmission to crews and
passengers. Copies of this letter were sent to Transportation Secretary Ray
LaHood and Acting FAA Administrator Lynne Osmus. April
27, 2009 )
Swine flu is a viral infection that is typically only passed between pigs. A
newly-identified A strain (H1N1) of this virus is reported to pass from person
to person. The first cases were reported in Mexico ,
and, at the time of this writing, cases have now been confirmed in the US ,
Canada ,
and Europe .
