Bird Flu Kits - Pandemic business continuity contingency planning

03 May 2013

H7N9 likely to spread, says Europe’s top flu expert

With the death toll from a new strain of the bird flu virus rising to 27 after a man died in central China's Hunan Province is it time for public authorities, businesses to revisit their pandemic action plans and indeed check the expiry dates of supplies purchased in 2009. 

So far at least 126 people have been diagnosed with the H7N9 virus since it was first reported in late March, with most cases so far confined to eastern China. One case has been reported in Taiwan. China confirmed 19 new cases in the week leading up to May 1st.

The World Health Organisation has called the outbreak "one of the most lethal" flu viruses ever seen, but there is no evidence yet of human-to-human transmission. Of those infected, a fifth died, a fifth recovered and the rest are still ill. The infection results in severe pneumonia and even blood poisoning and organ failure. The virus is contracted after contact with poultry, but experts believe it is possible it could mutate, triggering a pandemic. Public Health England (PHE) has taken the precaution of writing to GPs, warning them to be alert for symptoms in travellers returning from the Far East.

During the last pandemic we supplied customised Pandemic protection and prevention kits to a number of orgainisations. A couple that stood out being a major pharmaceutical company with over 20,000 employees involved in the manufacture of vaccines who needed to ensure they could keep producing and a major transport company who needed to keep the country mobile.

We have a couple of standard kits on our site http://www.aspli.com/safety/13/103/0/1/pandemic-swine-flu-protection but can tailor kits to suit your needs, such as sealed personnel desk packs etc. Since 2009 there has been advances in the level of protection we can offer with the introduction of Spirigel Complete fully virucidal hand gel and also the Moldex Air respiratory masks. These two way protection face masks are approved as a respirator thus protecting the wearer but in addition to Respiratory protection, these masks prevent particles (droplets) being expelled by the wearer, therefore protecting other persons and the environment from contamination, making them ideal for use during bird or swine flu pandemics.

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