The Flu Formerly Known as Swine

Honestly, I'd been avoiding discussing the swine flu on this blog, not because it's not an important story, but because I'm trying to focus on politics. But since this blog is also a way to showcase the work I'm doing in Springfield, I decided I'll put up some of the work I've done on the flu that officials now want us to call H1N1 virus. It just doesn't have the same ring to it though, so I'm going to keep calling it swine flu unless someone comes up with a better name for it. Anyway, I was pleasantly surprised last week when I called the two local hospitals here in Springfield -- Memorial Medical Center and St. John's Hospital -- and found out that, contrary to my expectations, they had not been inundated by people with flu-like symptoms who were afraid they'd picked up the swine flu bug. I figured with all the coverage of swine flu in recent weeks, a lot more people would be showing up afraid a simple cold or seasonal flu was swine flu. Instead, only a handful of people have come in to get tested for swine flu. It looks like the message "don't panic" is actually sinking in.

Public health officials are sure to like that reaction from the public. They've made it pretty clear they want people to avoid flooding the hospitals unless they're really sick, so doctors can focus on the most severe cases. And they've certainly shown to this point that they're well-prepared to handle the situation. Last Wednesday evening, Illinois and Chicago got their shipments of anti-viral medications and other supplies from the CDC's Strategic National Stockpile. They turned around and got those supplies out to nearly 300 hospitals and local public health offices in less than two days. Pretty impressive for government work, I'd say.