The bird flu virus needs to be beaten at an organisational level...

The World Health Organisation has a huge responsibility for coordinating all bird flu outbreaks and for releasing information about anything connected with the H5N1 flu virus globally. In a sense it is in a 'no win' position in that if anything goes awry with a bird flu outbreak they will be blamed, nevertheless they are trying to be ahead of the issue by setting up a global stockpile of medicines and vaccines to counteract the H5N1 bird flu virus. The initiative for this global stockpile came from the World Health Assembly who specifically requested the World Health Organisation to set it up.

From our discussions about the different avian flu outbreaks that have occurred in parts of the world we find that the first thing to happen when the H5N1 virus appears is panic and confusion and therefore at Ukmedix News we have welcomed the setting up of this international stockpile of bird flu medicines. As one of our writers recently commented, ‘the bird flu virus needs to be beaten at an organisational and bureaucratic level… '

Recently the bird flu outbreak in Wales that was restricted only to a tiny area (and was in any case not the H5N1 but the mild H2N7 low danger virus) caused panic and communication confusion that led to many people overreacting. It is essential that in a widespread global pandemic that the World Health Organisation takes full command of the situation and acts effectively and decisively to do the best for the world.

In response to the setting up of this global medicines stockpile a number of drug companies have agreed to donate medicines and equipment to be used as the World Health Organisation sees fit. For example GlaxoSmithKline, Omninvest, Baxter and Sanofi Pasteur have all rallied round to help with the donation of their medicines.