Having been away on holiday for two weeks in the sun, I must admit the fear of catching swine flu had temporarily receeded, although it still crossed my mind that catching the virus on the ferry crossing was a real possibility (being confined in a crowded place with other families) and could still have ruined our summer fun.
However firmly back on terra firma it is clear that swine flu is still prevalent in the news and media, suggesting that this virus is not being killed off by the warmer weather and fuelling suggestions that a re-surgence of cases is likely this autumn. Indeed there are 263 people in hospital with swine flu and 30 people in intensive care, as reported by the BBC last Friday. As children prepare to go back to school during the first week of Spetember, it is from then that experts are saying that the number of cases are likely to increase, based on past pandemics. The test will be whether the promised vaccine will be administered before the virus can undertake too much damage.
The government’s decision not to close schools during September could in fact give the swine flu virus the advantage, despite the fact the scientists have claimed that closing them could cut cases by 45%.
But if that is the decision then we have no choice but to prepare for what may happen. Are organisations resting on their laurels or are they preparing for a worst case scenario? I would personally side with the scientists rather than the politicians in this issue and I have ensured that I can continue to work from home if my children are off sick from school. By choosing not to limit public gatherings ministers think that they are reducing social and economic disruption, but from what I have read and heard, I have a niggling feeling that the exact opposite is likely to occur.
Follow my daily thoughts on twitter as the pandemic moves on.
Tags: home working, pandemic, schools closure, swine flu
