State officials discuss bird flu plans

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- State health officials on Thursday told a homeland security panel about the risks of bird flu hitting Missouri and what the state is doing to prepare for such an outbreak.

A deadly strain of bird flu first appeared in Hong Kong in 1997, re-emerged in December 2003 and has spread from Asia to Europe. Experts fear the virus could mutate into a new strain that passes easily among people, possibly triggering a pandemic.

That possibility has state health officials concerned, though they say it's hard to predict if or when an outbreak could hit Missouri or how bad it would be.

"Being a new virus, people aren't going to have immunity to it," said Aaron Winslow, chief of the Department of Health and Senior Services' Office of Community and Public Health Emergency Coordination. "It doesn't represent an illness that will be segregated away somewhere. This is something that will be among us and a daily part of our lives."

Actions the state is taking start with prevention, such as encouraging good hygiene habits such as hand washing to help protect against bird flu, as well as common colds and flus.

It's also making sure hospitals can handle a rush of sick patients.

The state also wants to make key medicines available to keep medical personnel healthy and able to care for everyone else.

Council member Harold Bengsch, a Greene County public health expert, worried that Missouri's hospitals would be overwhelmed and vaccines would take too long to be made and distributed.

"Are we doing enough to really teach our population what they can do to protect themselves?" he asked. "Science isn't going to do it. We can't react fast enough."

Another preparation is allowing nurses, when they renew their license, to offer to volunteer in case of disaster in Missouri or elsewhere, so the state will have easy access to people with various skills to call in on short notice.

The state is also working with education groups to make sure schools know what to do if something serious like bird flu breaks out.

"This is a really vulnerable population. We want to make sure they have the right instructions," said Bruce Clements, director of the health department's Center for Emergency Response and Terrorism.

Also, health officials are exploring how to encourage people to stay home -- for perhaps 10 days -- in a serious outbreak, to keep the disease from spreading rapidly in public places such as malls and grocery stores.

Officials acknowledge that would take not only preparation by individuals but cooperation from businesses to let employees find a way to work from home.

Officials are exploring creative ideas beyond setting up spots that people could go to for treatment. For example, they're looking at whether some medicines and instructions could be distributed by mail, to get people early treatment before centers are in place.

State officials say it's impossible to be fully prepared for such an outbreak but they're making improvements.

"Being able to take what we have on paper and put it into practice -- that's where we have the real challenge," Winslow said.