Pandemic Panic

Here we go again. The World Health Organization is debating whether to declare a pandemic regarding the H1N1 virus; originally misnamed the swine flu. The assistant director of WHO has stated, “It does not mean the severity of the situation has increased or people are getting seriously sick at higher numbers”.  Sadly, that statement will be ignored by most of the world’s population once the WHO declares a pandemic situation simply because it’s human nature to panic. They won’t take into account that the current assessment is still at a moderate level or that the H1N1 virus, while reportedly infecting over 26,000 people in 73 different countries and causing 140 deaths; is low in comparison to the common flu season worldwide which is known to have a far greater number of reported cases and fatalities. Hopefully the WHO will think long and hard before declaring a pandemic with the H1N1 virus because the panic that will probably ensue, overrunning hospitals and putting businesses in jeopardy, is a very real danger indeed.