Avian Flu
Frequently Asked Questions
Pandemic Flu Planning
Communications
Impact on University Operations
Travel
Future
History
Pandemic Flu Planning
Does the University have a plan if pandemic flu strikes the
CU community this fall and winter?
Who was involved in creating this plan?
Is the plan integrated with the community response?
Will the University be supporting community efforts if pandemic
flu arrives in Champaign - Urbana?
Has the University assessed the probability that pandemic avian
flu will come to the University or the twin cities?
What is the worst case scenario?
Has the university established any stockpiles of vaccines or
antiviral medication?
Communications
Do you have a plan to communicate with students and their
parents?
What steps have you taken to inform the campus of this pending
emergency?
Impact on University Operations
Is the decision to “close” the University
a decision that the University alone can make and if so, who
makes it?
If the campus closes or suspends classes, what will you do with
the students?
You mentioned “essential staff.” What does that mean?
How long will it be before normal campus operations are resumed
in the event of a pandemic?
Travel
Overseas travel would seem to represent a significant risk to
the campus. Do you have plans to restrict travel if a pandemic
breaks out overseas and the flu becomes easily transmissible
between humans?
Are there plans to monitor the deplaning
passengers at Willard?
Future
When will we find out more?
History
The United States has suffered from pandemics in the past.
What was the impact on campus during the 1918 Spanish Flu
pandemic and what do you expect for this situation?
Pandemic Flu Planning
Does the University have a plan if pandemic flu strikes the
CU community this fall and winter?
Answer: Yes, we have been
working on a plan since November of 2005. A copy of the plan is
available for review on the Office of Campus Emergency Planning
website – www.ocep.uiuc.edu. It is called the Infectious Disease
Incident Action Plan.
Who was involved in creating this plan?
Answer: The Office of
Campus Emergency Planning was responsible for coordinating the
development of the plan. The individuals who collaborated in
this effort represented campus administration, public safety,
the university research community, public affairs, international
studies, legal counsel, health center, housing, occupational
safety and health, university administration, human resources,
county emergency management, and the local public health
district.
Is the plan integrated with the community response?
Answer:
Yes, our emergency planning and public safety staff meet
routinely with other local emergency planners and public health
officials to assure that our plans are properly coordinated.
Will the University be supporting community efforts if
pandemic flu arrives in Champaign - Urbana?
Answer: It’s
unlikely that pandemic flu will arrive in Champaign - Urbana
without affecting the University and as a community partner we
have to assist one another. We have an agreement with Carle
hospital to activate a “surge facility” (temporary hospital) in
the event that Carle and other local health providers would be
overwhelmed with patients exceeding their ability to provide
proper care. The present plans call for the surge facility to be
activated in the West Great Hall of Memorial Stadium. We are
also studying at least one other proposal from Carle Hospital
concerning the use of UI facilities.
Has the University assessed the probability that pandemic
avian flu will come to the University or the twin cities?
Answer: The information on the status of avian flu comes from a
variety of sources, including the World Health Organization, the
Center for Disease Control, state and local health departments,
peer groups and related listservs, etc. Individuals on campus
also monitor this situation. The advanced state of worldwide
communications and public health surveillance makes it likely
that we will be able to predict the potential exposure the
university may experience if this illness becomes easily
transmissible between humans.
What is the worst case scenario?
Answer: A worst case
scenario would be the arrival of a pandemic within the United
States that would overtax all available public health and
medical resources, limiting our ability to sustain campus
operations, and restricting our ability to obtain federal,
state, and local support. This would create a situation where we
would be on our own and wholly dependent on our staff, some of
whom may decide to stay home and “ride it out.” We are fortunate
in that we have an outstanding staff and faculty and fully
expect that many would continue to report for work. We would
then formulate our response based on the resources at hand. Our
biggest worry would be for the safety of the essential staff
(those who continued to work) and for the students who must
remain on campus.
Has the university established any stockpiles of vaccines or
antiviral medication?
Answer: There has been no concerted effort
to stockpile vaccines or antivirals primarily due to their lack
of availability and cost. As you may know, there is currently no
vaccine for this particular virus although one company has
recently reported some success in the development of a vaccine.
Communications
Do you have a plan to communicate with students and their
parents?
Answer: We have a group that is looking at further
development of existing communication channels to strengthen our
ability to “get the word out.” Currently we have campus web
sites, email groups, and telephone messaging systems which will
inform people of the status of campus operations and/or personal
steps they can take to further assure their safety and health. A
key focus for us will be to assure that students and their
parents know the sources they can tap to “stay informed.”
What steps have you taken to inform the campus of this
pending emergency?
Answer: Campus deans, directors, department
heads, business managers and human resource contacts were
informed in an email on 6/9/06 that there was a possibility of a
pandemic flu this coming fall. In a subsequent email on 6/23/06
we provided them with several readiness steps and initiatives
their units should undertake to prepare them for a possible
pandemic. Additional emails will be sent to members of the
student body, faculty and staff as information becomes available
or as planning is completed.
Impact on University Operations
Is the decision to “close” the University a decision that the
University alone can make and if so, who makes it?
Answer: The
Chancellor at each of our campuses has the authority to decide
whether or not the campus will remain open under emergency
circumstances. This is also a decision that could be made for
all three campuses by President White in concert with
discussions with the Chancellors. Additionally, the Illinois
Department of Public Health could recommend closing the campus.
In the event that the Illinois Department of Public Health
recommends closing the campus, we have been assured that would
be a decision made with the input of proper university
authorities.
If the campus closes or suspends classes, what will you do
with the students?
Answer: If a decision is made to close the
campus or suspend classes, the most likely scenario is that it
will not be something of short duration, meaning a week or less.
Therefore, it would be in the best interests of both the campus
and the students to have them return home until such time as the
campus would reopen or resume classes. If that occurs, we still
have an ongoing obligation to perhaps as many as 6,000 students,
mostly from overseas, who will find it difficult or impossible
to return home. We have contingency plans in the event that such
would occur.
You mentioned “essential staff.” What does that mean?
Answer:
We have asked departments to identify within their units those
persons who would be required to remain at work in the event of
an emergency. These are persons who are critical to maintaining
the ongoing function of the unit whether it is in facilities,
information technology support, food service, health care,
campus utilities, animal care, or support of critical research.
Other persons would be designated as “non-essential” meaning
that in an emergency and depending on the circumstances, in this
case a pandemic flu, they could be advised not to report for
work until such time as the situation stabilized.
How long will it be before normal campus operations are
resumed in the event of a pandemic?
Answer: History tells us
that pandemic flu usually comes in two waves with the first
lasting for several weeks, perhaps as many as 4-6. The second
wave lasts not quite as long, and the entire event can play
itself out over a 3-4 month period. This mirrors the experience
we had in 1918. We would anticipate that after the initial
impact, campus operations would begin moving back to a normal
operating mode after 3-4 weeks, possibly sooner.
Travel
Overseas travel would seem to represent a significant risk to
the campus. Do you have plans to restrict travel if a pandemic
breaks out overseas and the flu becomes easily transmissible
between humans?
Answer: This is an issue that warrants further
study. Our position at this time is that we would certainly
recommend to students, faculty and staff with plans to travel
abroad that they exercise good judgment in making any decision
to travel overseas. We would certainly prefer that they defer
such travel until the threat is diminished. However, we do
represent a world class university, one that prides itself in
academic and human freedoms. Although it is possible that we
would find ourselves mandating travel restrictions, that is
certainly a decision that would be reserved as a last resort and
made only with due considerations and input from the proper
authorities.
Are there plans to monitor the deplaning passengers at
Willard?
Answer: That’s a decision most likely made by the
Champaign-Urbana Public Health District. Since Willard is not an
international airport, that type of monitoring will probably
occur at places outside of Champaign Urbana.
Future
When will we find out more?
Answer: Our intention is to
provide regular updates on the status of campus operations on
various websites, through emails, and the Office of Public
Affairs. Information will also continue to be updated on the
Campus Emergency Planning Website at
University of Illinois - Campus Emergency
Planning and there
is considerable information on the McKinley Health Center
website at
www.mckinley.uiuc.edu.
History
The United States has suffered from pandemics in the past.
What was the impact on campus during the 1918 Spanish Flu
pandemic and what do you expect for this situation?
Answer: We
have researched the effects of the Spanish Flu pandemic of 1918
and know that the university did not close or suspend classes.
It did alter the schedules for major public events. The campus
experienced two waves of the illness which arrived in early fall
and was gone by mid December. The university experienced
approximately 1600 cases and 22 deaths among students, staff,
and faculty. As far as the current situation, it is very
difficult to predict what the impact would be. Our hope is that
the advanced state of our medical care and public health
infrastructure would minimize the human impact and the resulting
potential to disrupt campus operations.
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