This page
This page started at http://newfluwiki2.com/showComment.do?commentId=133488
This page might become a simplified version of the Citizen’s Manual so that more people will become part of the solution, not part of the problem.
No pictures, just a wikipage anyone can translate into their own languages.
Help needed with this wikipage:
- Find links.
- Add more text.
- Create a diary or two for people to add their ideas and comments.
- Translate.
- Link to it if useful.
Why
It’s on now. Some call it swine flu, some call it novel flu, some call it panflu. It’s flu caused by a flu virus that popped up recently, so that most people haven’t been exposed to it previously. It will most likely cause disease in a large part of the world’s population: not 5–10% like Winter flu, but probably 4–6 times more people. It will cause abundant disease in waves, with more and more people ill over a period of several weeks to a few months, then less and less again. There’ll be more than one wave, and the second may cause a higher proportion of severe cases, as compared to the first wave.
This is how flu works: infection, symptoms, local reproductive numbers.
This is what an unmitigated pandemic looks like: many people ill at the same time, health care overload, efforts to reduce infection, socioeconomic disruption.
Goals
The goal is mitigation, not avoidance. We can and should reduce the potential damage. It’s what docs and us do when we deal with non-trivial disease. Make more room for life, if you like.
No tool is perfect, but if they are used together there’s potential for much better effect. Some tools need to be applied soon, specifically contact reduction. Most tools need to be applied for long-ish periods.
These are the levels of response: individual/family, town/region, country/world. We can’t make vaccines ourselves, but we are the only ones who can get local response done. We can’t repair a broken communication hub, but we can share a cellphone charger. We’re in charge of our own layer.
What and How
Flu works by causing disease in an individual, and passing itself on to other individuals. This manual works like that too, because we can do specific things, and we can tell specific things to others.
Do
This is what many citizens can do: reduce/delay infection, treat at home and make wise use of health care systems, proactively cope with disruption. Part of this is learning about flu and learning how to do things. Part of this is stocking up if and as feasible. Part of this is linking up with neighbours through existing societal networks.
- Reduce infection. … Links to masks advice and simple masks.
- Treat at home. … Links to the treat at home diary.
- Reduce disruption. … Levels for this: home, town, wider. Cellphone crank recharger vs utility protection, etc.
- Workplace Planning - In the event of pandemic influenza, businesses and other employers will play a key role in protecting employees’ health and safety as well as limiting the negative impact to the economy and society.
http://www.pandemicflu.gov/plan/workplaceplanning/index.html
- Justice Systems - Preparing the Justice System for a Pandemic Influenza and Other Public Health Emergencies
http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/BJA/pandemic/pandemic_main.html
A dozen generalizable examples, each highlighting a principle of “things I can do”.
Say
This is what many citizens can tell others: how to talk about this, useful links, spread the word.
Ways to tell others about this idea in general and about specific items.
A few videos, wikipages, etc. … Link to the videos diary.
What if
Look at information sources in case information changes. … Links to said information. How to gather information locally, to know about local spread.