Infection Control: Pandemic Planning - Essay Example

? Infection Control - Pandemic Planning Infection Control - Pandemic Planning Introduction Since the outbreak of SARS in2003, the Federal government and other global interest groups like World Health Organization have been giving specific focus to the concept of pandemic planning. Today, business managements also pay particular attention to this concept. Pandemic planning is a documented strategy prepared in the context of a widespread outbreak of a fatal infectious disease. This concept has a broader scope in workplaces, communities, and in vulnerable areas nationwide. The 2009-H1N1or swine flu was declared as a pandemic by the World Health Organization in 2009 (CDC, 2010). This influenza A (H1N1) virus was the most major cause of human flu in 2009. As Patel, Panchal, Chavda, Modiya, Marvaniya, Modi, and Sen (2010) note, some strains of H1N1 are endemic in humans and they result in a small percent of all flu-like illness and a small percent of all seasonal flu. Other strains are endemic in pigs and birds. This paper will discuss effective pandemic planning for the management of an outbreak of H1N1 virus on a cruise ship with 1970 passengers and 734 crew on board. Infection Prevention and Control The UK’s National Infection Prevention and Control Framework describes extensive measures to combat the outbreak of future infectious diseases. This framework strongly recommends the active involvement of individuals, communities, healthcare authorities, national and local governments, and other care givers to address effective infection prevention and control so as to minimize the risk of infectious diseases that can endanger lives (NHS Professionals Infection Control Policy, 2010). There is a wide range of national policy guidelines such as The Health and Social Care Act (2008), Essential Steps to safe, clean care (2007), National Patient Safety Agency Revised Cleaning Manual (2009), and Winning Ways- Working together to reduce HCAI in England (2003) now available for the prevention of healthcare associated infection and communicable diseases (As cited in NHS South East Essex and NHS South West Essex, NHS, Infection Prevention & Control Team, 2011). These national policy guidelines suggest that the effective prevention and control of healthcare associated infections (HCAI) should be practiced in everyday life and applied by everyone on a continuous basis. As per the National Infection Prevention and Control Manual of Health Protection Scotland (2012), it is particularly important for communities to have awareness of the possibilities concerning an outbreak of pandemic diseases. This awareness is very vital to prevent the situations leading to diseases like swine flu and to treat the disease conditions effectively (NDMA, 2009). The framework specifically indicates that thoughtful staff engagement is paramount in the prevention and control of infectious diseases. The prevention and control practices have to be initiated from the bottom line (local communities or regions) and spread to the national level. According to the NHS Infection Prevention and Control Policy (n. d.), Director of Infection Prevention and Control, Infection Prevention and Control Teams, general practitioners, nursing staff, domestic staff, all other staff groups, and all key healthcare institutions in the country are involved in the prevention of HCAI. Pandemic Planning Requirements The given case scenario is about the management of an outbreak of H1N1 virus on a cruise ship. A cruise ship is likely to carry passengers from different territories, sometimes from different countries. In addition, people cannot always stay away from the affected people while they are in a ship. Hence, the likelihood of spreading the disease will be high. In this situation, high awareness of the H1N1 flu is necessary to prevent the spread of this disease effectively. Hence, the medical team in the ship must inform the passengers and crew about the potential causes that would lead to spread of this infectious virus. The H1N1virus is mainly spread through coughing and sneezing by people with H1N1 influenza. As cited in Jenkins (Ed. 2010, p. 58) points out, sometimes this infectious disease may spread though touching surfaces or objects containing H1N1 viruses and then bringing hands in contact with mouth or nose. Hence, people in the ship must be instructed to avoid close interactions with one another. Referring to the infection prevention and control mechanism suggested by the NHS Kirklees (n. d.), the crew on the board, particularly ones who directly interacts with passengers and their co-workers, have a key role to play in hindering the spread of the disease. In the words of Mak and Lai (2012), those people should cover their mouth with a tissue when they cough or sneeze. They must also wash their hands frequently with soap and water or alcohol based hand gel. In addition, there are some common precautions that have to be taken by the entire people on the ship. According to Whitney (2009), people must avoid touching their eyes, nose, mouth, and close contact with affected individuals. If an individual is affected with flu-like illnesses, it is recommendable to let him/her stay in a closed room for at least 24 hours until he/she is recovered from the illness. Preventive vaccination for swine flu pandemic is a better strategy to limit the dreadful consequences of this communicable disease. In addition, the ship’s medical team must be prepared to face emergencies and should give antiviral drugs to persons showing symptoms of swine flu. In order to prevent the spread of this disease successfully, physicians and other medical staff should not let anyone to closely interact with affected individuals. Timely response to the flu symptoms is inevitable to improve the recovery period. Phases of Changes in Approaches If cases of swine flu are reported in cruise ship, the medical team should immediately identify the affected individuals and let them be in a separate room. Under any circumstances (except emergency), the affected individuals should not be allowed to mingle with others. According to the phases of pandemic alert described by the WHO (2012), human to human transmission of H1N1 virus would occur under limited circumstances (for instance, interaction between an affected individual and an unprotected caregiver) during the initial phases of the swine flu. Under this phase, the ship’s medical team has to spread the disease awareness among the passengers and the crew on board. In the next phase, the flu’s human to human transmission will be occurred at a faster rate hence the possibility of disease spreading will be higher at this phase. Therefore, it is better to take preventive measures such as vaccination to prevent the spread of the disease. In the next stage, the virus transmission will be occurred at an even faster rate. Hence, extensive community based programs are needed to curb the outbreak of the swine flu. To be more specific, the medical team and other crew members must play a key role here to enhance the complete destruction of the viruses. Lessons from Past Exposures A number of lessons can be learned from past exposures or pandemics. The 2009 swine flu pandemic indicates that the delivery of H1N1 vaccination is an effective strategy to protect most vulnerable communities and groups from the life threatening risks of H1N1 (EMEA, ECDC & HMA, 2009). In addition, delivery of seasonal flu vaccine to healthcare workers is also found to be a better preventive action. As specified in Registered Nurses Journal (2009), frontline staff and social care staff have a crucial role to play in preventing the spread of this infectious disease successfully. H1N1 awareness programs including vaccination campaigns are essential to enlighten people about the dreadful impacts of this disease and hence make them aware of the need of taking potential precautionary measures on time. According to a study conducted on the recent H1N1 pandemic, factors of a successful awareness campaign are “flexible and accessible delivery approaches, visible leadership, effective communications strategy, and attention to the basics of having a robust plan with clear governance arrangements and supported by sound project management” (Mcllwain, 2010). Thoughtful and timely governmental actions are inevitable to reduce the adverse impacts of this pandemic. Undoubtedly, active involvement of community leaders, social workers, and other interest groups are vital to prevent the spread of this communicable disease successfully. Future Directions for Infection Prevention In order to prevent the widespread outbreak of H1N1 disease in future, individuals and communities must stay aware of the potential causes and symptoms of the swine flu. Primarily, individuals should report to healthcare authorities concerned as soon as they suspect the presence of H1N1 virus in their body. Such an immediate response would assist the individuals to get fast recovery. In addition, people must practice good hygiene because H1N1 viruses may spread through coughing and sneezing (H1N1 flu information, n. d.). It is better not to share utensils or drinks because such activities would promote the spread of this disease. Community based programs must be developed to assess the level of disease preparedness of various communities and groups periodically. Finally, it is advisable to use technological advancements to maintain effective business interactions as it reduces direct human interactions. Conclusion From the above discussion, it is clear that H1N1 is pandemic disease which can have life threatening effects on affected people. In order to manage the outbreak of swine flu on the cruise ship, the ship’s medical team and the other crew members must be vigilant. They must timely identify the affected individuals and keep those persons away from unaffected people. In addition, awareness programs and vaccination would be effective to minimize the risk of this flu. Past H1N1 exposure experiences indicate that effective leadership and community based programs can reduce the complications of swine flu to a great extent. Better hygiene practices and timely healthcare assistance can reduce the threat of this infectious disease in future. References CDC. (2010). 2009 H1N1 Flu ("Swine Flu") and You. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/qa.htm EMEA, ECDC & HMA. (2009). European Strategy for Influenza A/H1N1 Vaccine Benefit-Risk Monitoring. Retrieved from http://www.emea.europa.eu/docs/en_GB/document_library/Report/2010/01/WC500044933.pdf Health Protection Scotland. (2012). National Infection Prevention and Control Manual. 1.0: 1-23. Retrieved from http://www.nhslothian.scot.nhs.uk/Services/A-Z/InfectionControl/InfectionControlManual/CP001.pdf H1N1 flu information. (n. d.). How to Prevent an H1N1 Infection. MichiganTech. Retrieved from http://www.mtu.edu/flu/resources/prevent/ Jenkins, W. O. (Ed.). (2010). Biosurveillance: Efforts to Develop a National Biosurveillance Capability Need a National Strategy and a Designated Leader. GAO. US: DIANE Publishing. Mak, K & Lai, C. (2012). Knowledge, risk perceptions, and preventive precautions among Hong Kong students during the 2009 in?uenza A (H1N1) pandemic. American Journal of Infection Control. 40 (2012) 273-5. Mcllwain, C. (2010). Learning the lessons from the H1N1 vaccination campaign for Health Care Workers. Department of Health. Retrieved from http://www.dh.gov.uk/prod_consum_dh/groups/dh_digitalassets/@dh/@en/@ps/documents/digitalasset/dh_117133.pdf NHS Professionals Infection Control Policy. (2010). Retrieved from http://www.nhsprofessionals.nhs.uk/download/comms/POL6NHSPInfectionControlPolicyv2.pdf NHS South East Essex and NHS South West Essex, NHS, Infection Prevention & Control Team. (2011). Infection prevention and control policy. Retrieved from http://www.see.nhs.uk/content/file/GP%20Zone/IP&C/Guidelines/Policy.pdf NDMA. (2009). Prevention and Management of Influenza A (H1N1). Govt. of India. Retrieved from http://india.gov.in/allimpfrms/alldocs/12417.pdf NHS Kirklees. (n. d.). Infection prevention and control. Retrieved from http://www.kirklees.nhs.uk/your-health/infection-prevention-and-control/ Patel, R., Panchal, I., Chavda, D., Modiya, P., Marvaniya, H., Modi, K and Sen, D. J. (2010). H1N1/09 Influenza: 20th Century flu pandemics. Journal of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Research, 2(3):605-619. Registered Nurses Journal. (2009). on the frontline: As H1N1 spreads across Ontario, RNs are at the epicentre of plans to keep people well. Nov & Dec. Retrieved from http://rnao.ca/sites/rnao-ca/files/Nov_Dec_RNJ.pdf Whitney, K. (2009). How is H1N1 spread and how can you prevent it? Reporter, Feb 10. Retrieved from http://www.mc.vanderbilt.edu/reporter/index.html?ID=7597 World Health Organization. (2012). Current WHO phase of pandemic alert (avian influenza H5N1), Influenza. Retrieved from http://www.who.int/influenza/preparedness/pandemic/h5n1phase/en/index.html Read More