Human Health
The Health Protection Agency [External website] deals with epidemics and health issues, along with the Department of Health [External website] and the Northern Ireland Department of Health and Social Services and Public Safety [External website], SHOW - Scotland's Health on the Web [External website] and HOWIS - Health of Wales Information Service [External website].
NHS Direct has 24-hour health information and advice, on the Healthline: 0845 46 47
On this page:
The level of risk
Though the risk of a serious epidemic or outbreak of disease has reduced with the widespread availability of modern drugs and medicines, the risk clearly remains. The Department of Health (DH) [External website] is the lead in Government and it works with the National Health Service and other health and social care organisations to deliver effective and efficient health and social care.
Though the health of the nation continues to improve, the UK Government is not complacent about the risks that we face. Human health hazards that are of particular concern and which drive the UK Government's contingency planning assumptions are an influenza type disease (both at epidemic and pandemic scales), an outbreak of a severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) type disease and a localised outbreak of legionella or meningitis.
Examples
The table below shows some examples of the specific risks which are assessed as part of the national risk assessment framework. The framework applies locally, regionally, in the devolved administrations and at the UK level. Details of the framework and risk assessment methodology can be found in the risk section of this site.
Risk Evaluation
| Type of Risk | Risk Categories | Outcome Description for Planning Purposes |
|---|
| Hazard |
Influenza-type disease (epidemic) |
A serious epidemic of much greater severity than the usual seasonal flu. Weekly GP consultations for new episodes of flu-like illness likely to exceed 400 per 100,000 of population at the peak (compared with a peak of around 200 per 100,000 population per week in an average year). |
|---|
| Hazard |
Legionella/ meningitis outbreak |
Localised outbreak of a disease which could cause up to 10 fatalities and up to 50 casualties, with no variation in likelihood between localities. |
|---|
Guidance
-
A national framework for responding to an influenza pandemic [External website] - This Revised Framework sets out the Government's strategic approach to achieving the Government's aim of ensuring that the UK is prepared to limit the internal spread of a pandemic, to the extent that this is possible, and to minimise health, economic and social harm as far as possible achieving these aims and is intended for use by all those involved in planning for and responding to an influenza pandemic. It builds upon and supersedes previous UK Influenza Pandemic contingency planning.
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WHO: Outbreak Communication [External PDF, 70 pages, 1.47MB]
Best practice for communicating with the public during an outbreak Report of the WHO Expert Consultation on Outbreak Communications held in Singapore, 21-23 September 2004
Practitioner Information
Pandemic Influenza
See also our Pandemic Flu section of this site
- The Cabinet Office has published introductory material on pandemic influenza for businesses and other organisations [PDF, 6 pages, 138KB] to use, should they so wish, as basis of advice to their staff during the current pandemic alert period WHO Phase 3 to raise awareness about pandemic influenza. Publication does not mean either an increase in the risk of a pandemic emerging or that a pandemic is necessarily imminent. It is part of Cabinet Office's ongoing work to ensure that businesses and other organisations have appropriate advice to help them plan.
-
FT: Ask the experts - how to prepare for bird flu [External website] Online Q&A with Bruce Mann, head of the CCS, and Dr. Michael Perdue of the World Health Organization, covering a variety of issues including business continuity planning, time frames, anti-virals.
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CDC - Business Pandemic Plan Checklist [External website] - Identifies important, specific activities large businesses can do now to protect employees' health and safety, many of which will help in other emergencies.
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London Flu Pandemic Contingency Plan Prompt Document [PDF, 12 pages, 122KB] - Developed by the London Resilience Team and the Regional Public Health Group to ensure key agencies and organisations have robust business continuity arrangements to maintain essential services in a flu pandemic.
Avian Flu
See also the Animal and Plant Disease page
Northern Ireland
Scotland
-
NHS 24 helpline 08454 24 24 24, textphone 18001 0854 24 24 24
Wales
-
NHS Direct Wales 0845 46 47
International Health Organisations
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