January 28, 2010

WHO Calls H1N1 Response Imperfect

By Kelley Luckstein

The World Health Organization says its response to the H1N1 pandemic could have been better, but was not unduly swayed by drug manufacturers…

 

In North America, many experts defended the response to the outbreak, which WHO last April declared a phase six pandemic -- the highest level. The phases reflect that an infectious agent is widely spread and causing disease in the community, but they say nothing about the severity of the disease…

 

The public health response should be compared to the use of seat belts or auto insurance, according to Gregory Poland, MD, of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn. Every day, he said in an e-mail, he puts on his seat belt before driving. "I don't finish each day and say 'What a waste, I didn't have an accident,'" he said.

 

MedPage Today by Michael Smith, 1/27/2010

Tags: H1N1, Infectious Diseases

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