Current World Health Organization Phases of Pandemic Alert

In nature, influenza viruses circulate continuously among animals, especially birds. Even though such viruses might theoretically develop into pandemic viruses, in Phase 1 no viruses circulating among animals have been reported to cause infections in humans.

In Phase 2 an animal influenza virus circulating among domesticated or wild animals is known to have caused infection in humans, and is therefore considered a potential pandemic threat.

In Phase 3, an animal or human-animal influenza reassortant virus has caused sporadic cases or small clusters of disease in people, but has not resulted in human-to-human transmission sufficient to sustain community-level outbreaks. Limited human-to-human transmission may occur under some circumstances, for example, when there is close contact between an infected person and an unprotected caregiver. However, limited transmission under such restricted circumstances does not indicate that the virus has gained the level of transmissibility among humans necessary to cause a pandemic.

Phase 4 is characterized by verified human-to-human transmission of an animal or human-animal influenza reassortant virus able to cause “community-level outbreaks.” The ability to cause sustained disease outbreaks in a community marks a significant upwards shift in the risk for a pandemic. Any country that suspects or has verified such an event should urgently consult with WHO so that the situation can be jointly assessed and a decision made by the affected country if implementation of a rapid pandemic containment operation is warranted. Phase 4 indicates a significant increase in risk of a pandemic but does not necessarily mean that a pandemic is a forgone conclusion.

Phase 5 is characterized by human-to-human spread of the virus into at least two countries in one WHO region. While most countries will not be affected at this stage, the declaration of Phase 5 is a strong signal that a pandemic is imminent and that the time to finalize the organization, communication, and implementation of the planned mitigation measures is short.

Phase 6, the pandemic phase, is characterized by community level outbreaks in at least one other country in a different WHO region in addition to the criteria defined in Phase 5. Designation of this phase will indicate that a global pandemic is under way.

During the post-peak period, pandemic disease levels in most countries with adequate surveillance will have dropped below peak observed levels. The post-peak period signifies that pandemic activity appears to be decreasing; however, it is uncertain if additional waves will occur and countries will need to be prepared for a second wave.

Previous pandemics have been characterized by waves of activity spread over months. Once the level of disease activity drops, a critical communications task will be to balance this information with the possibility of another wave. Pandemic waves can be separated by months and an immediate “at-ease” signal may be premature.

In the post-pandemic period, influenza disease activity will have returned to levels normally seen for seasonal influenza. It is expected that the pandemic virus will behave as a seasonal influenza A virus. At this stage, it is important to maintain surveillance and update pandemic preparedness and response plans accordingly. An intensive phase of recovery and evaluation may be required.

Source: http://www.who.int/csr/disease/avian_influenza/phase/en/index.html

First Things First

A seminar leader wanted to make an important point, so he took a wide-mouth jar and filled it with rocks. "Is the jar full?" he asked. "Yes," came a reply. "Oh really?" he said. Then he poured smaller pebbles into the jar to fill the spaces between the rocks. "Is it full now?" "Yes," said someone else. "Oh really?" He then filled the remaining spaces between the rocks and stones with sand. "Is it full now?" he asked. "Probably not," said another, to the amusement of the audience. Then he took a pitcher of water and pour it into the jar.

"What's is the lesson we learn from this?" he asked. An eager participant spoke up. "No matter how full the jar is, there's always room for more." "Not quite." said the leader. "The lesson is to get everything in the jar, you must always put the big things in first."

What are you putting first in your life?

Singapore beyond Lee Kuan Yew

Source: http://theonlinecitizen.com/2009/04/singapore-beyond-lee-kuan-yew/comment-page-1/

National Day Parade 2004

Speech Day Parade Rehearsal 15 April 2009 - 2 Days Left

Lee Kuan Yew's comment on the quality of Singapore Leader

When employee of Singapore Airline call for a work-to-rule in 1980, Lee’s response was uncompromising. “two weeks, it will take many many months to repair the damage, I gave them a choice, continue this and I will by every means at my disposal teach you and get the people of Singapore help me teach you a lesson you won’t forget, and I am prepared to start all over again, or stop it........... Whoever govern Singapore must have that iron in him, or give it up, this is not a game of cards, this is your life and mine. I spent the whole lifetime building this, and as long as I am in charge, nobody is going to knock it down.”

Speech Day Parade Rehearsal 13 April 2009 - 4 Days Left

Speech Day Parade Rehearsal 8 April 2009 - 9 Days Left

Military Drill

Click the link below to read more about the following topics:

1. The History of Drill
2. Drill and Politics
3. Drill and Physical Training
4. Drill and Discipline

Source: http://www.vexen.co.uk/military/drill.html

Speech Day Parade

If I may borrow John F. Kennedy 1917 - 1963, Thirty-fifth President of the USA "... ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country." For those who are still thinking of whether they should or should not join in the Speech Day Parade, "... ask not what your unit can do for you, ask what you can do for your unit."