Greetings from Orlando
Hello everyone from Orlando! We arrived yesterday from bitter cold MN to a not so sunny, but still a welcome 60 degrees, Florida. We received a tour of the hotel complex, found out what was on the agenda for the next couple of days, and had a bit of down time before enjoying dinner and a superbowl party. It was nice to relax a bit before the beginning of the Summit today, which has been jam packed full of interesting information.
Dr. Osterholm openned the morning with a few welcoming remarks, followed by a 20 minute pre-recorded video of Dr. Margaret Chan, the Director-General of the World Health Organization. She spoke about what the WHO is doing in terms of pandemic preparedness on a global scale, and highlighted why being prepared for a pandemic is so vital to the world's population. Following Dr. Chan's video, Dr. Osterholm did a presentation titled "The Fog of Pandemic Preparedness." Something I found very interesting from his talk, is how the media has influenced the general public's awareness of a possible Influenza pandemic. In the fall of 2005, when there was daily media coverage of a possible pandemic of H5N1, the perceived threat (by the general public) was much higher than today. Even though the actual threat of of pandemic is the same or even greater toda, since the media is bored of the story, the general population's level of concern has decreased to levels that hinder preparedness.
Following, Dr. Osterholm's talk, Dr. Peter Sandman, a risk communication consultant, presented on how to communicate the risk Pandemic influenza to participants in the business world. He is a witty speaker, using bits of humor to covey the challenges businesses may face if a pandemic were to hit, as well as how to communicate during times of crisis.
We also had a presentation by Michael Evangelides, a principal in Deloitte's Chicago consulting practice, and a lunch lecture by John Barry, author of "The Great Influenza". It was a bit unappetizing to hear the gruesome descriptions of influenza patients while eating, but as a public health student and medical history nerd, I really enjoyed it. This afternoon, there will be a variety of breakout sessions to attend such as the benefits and opportunities of working with your community before and during a possible pandemic. Followed by this evening's keynote speaker, Madeline Albright, which I am really looking forward to. I will keep you all posted on how it all unfolds...