The most effective antidote to avian flu is Tamiflu. It is available from Doctorcall at £50 per dose. To purchase supplies or for more information, call Peter Mills on 0844 264 0421.
How would Britain be hit?
A risk assessment by Maplecroft, a risk consultancy, concluded that among developed countries Britain would suffer most due to high population density, widespread urbanisation and a large number of tourists and business visitors.
The consequences here could be devastating – the more severe the particular strain of the flu proved to be, the worse things would become.
- The public transport network would be badly affected due to a shortage of drivers, engineers, maintenance and computer staff. Organisations which depend on foreign travel would find vast disruption of flights with the possibility that flights might be banned entirely for a time to prevent spread of the disease.
- Fuel supplies and deliveries would be cut
- Food preparation and delivery could be reduced leading to empty shelves in supermarkets and bare fridges
- Although much of Britain’s banking system is automated, it still depends on key workers in many areas and their absence in large numbers would slow payment and collection, transfers and reporting.
- Schools might have to be closed due to shortage of teachers. But since sending healthy young children home would mean parents would have to stay away from work to supervise them, various strategies might be adopted to minimise this, like keeping schools open with a skeleton staff of teachers, play groups, etc. But whatever strategy is adopted it is still likely many parents would have to stay away from work to look after healthy children, let alone nurse those who are ill.
- The NHS would face an enormous challenge with flu cases tending to squeeze out other cases, surgeries overwhelmed and hospitals having to cancel all but emergency operations.
The British government has stockpiled over 14 million doses of Tamiflu which will be given first to healthcare workers and key workers in other essential services like the police and government departments, then to groups clinically most at risk, before any supplies will be made available to the general public. Businesses are expected to work out their own salvation.
In this section