Flu Pandemic

It looks like the strain of flu poss due to hit us this year is of the H1N1 or avian.

academic.oup.com/view-large...

academic.oup.com/jid/articl...

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1918_...

The only fear of the flu this year is as always secondary infections such as types of pneumonia and again it is worthwhile noting the hospitals have plans or the worse and least cases, treatment looking at it it is a hefty tome also included is emergency places of treatment, nursing homes are included as community hospitals (yes a throwback to the old cottage hospital we have in Southport 2 homes that were in the stage of close down being earmarked for this staffing by red cross and or st johns.

[Hidden]

Hi Ant. I opened & quickly closed those links, too depressing! My surgery failed to order enough flu vaccine so we had to wait & go to a chemist. But, given the state of the nhs where I live, the safest answer is hibernation 😊

Our general hospital is rated "inadequate" on all counts, despite the superhuman efforts of the people who work there. Impossible to get a bed on a chest ward because of elderly "bed blockers" (very rude term I think) ie people with no one to care for them & no social services support. No GP appointments either, so A&E is rammed 24/7. The nhs isn't just in chaos here, it's ground to a HALT. I'm very worried about the winter 😕This country is totally failing its most vulnerable citizens, i.e. the sick & disabled, & all we hear is "Brexit Brexit"! It makes my blood boil 😡😡😡

[DiannaH in reply to Hidden]

Only reason these Poe people are deemed ‘bed blockers ‘ is that the social care system is underfunded ( surprise) and inadequate, makes me angry, how come these agencies used to function adequately??Tories winding downNHS.

[Hidden in reply to DiannaH]

we similar problems we just cannot always take people in as the funding bodies won't pay the price we justify and set on our bed's pricing is a bit different to NHS beds as we have 5-bed categories the social services expect to pay for the cheapest despite need.

[Billiejean_2]

Sorry Ant but I feel those articles are good for nothing but engendering fear and panic. I can't think of one reason why anybody should want to read them. They are full of useless facts and figures, leaving you no wiser then you were but a lot more fearful. I just glanced at them for about two seconds and that was more then enough.

[skischool in reply to Billiejean_2]

BJ if you want the real facts about this years flue see the link on my post,they are facts and not sensational headlines and as of this year they indicate no epidemics in site and all is well controlled in flue land, skis and a healthy cat x

[Billiejean_2 in reply to skischool]

Thank you Ski and well informed Scruffy. I'm adopting the ostrich approach to the flu and am leaving my head firmly buried in the sand until it becomes necessary to have my nostrils surgically de-grained As usually happens, I cannot get the jab until I am without exacerbation symptoms. This leads to huge worry about being exposed to the virus while unprotected. So I'm just steering away from the subject where possible. If you ignore something for long enough, it may even go away

[skischool in reply to Billiejean_2]

i hope your grotty infection symptoms fade rapidly.i think we often accumulate anti bodies to most of the flue strains around so i am sure a couple of weeks without the jab will not put you in too much jeopardy.Now i shall make the subject vanish abracadabra gone ..........skis

[Lyn1955]

I was due to have flu jab on tue but hey guess what I go down over the weekend with my 6th chest infection of the year lucky me

[Hidden]

I had no intention of being a scaremonger just sharing the history as it was just after ww1, a history of what the scaremongers are using already the proposed action of what will or could be done if ever the worst should happen and the government has to set cobra in action. Still, we all live under what ifs and not what can be.