Stay Tuned for Sports, Traffic, and Swine Flu
The dreaded Mexican Pig Flu will be back. Oh yes. Of that, there is no question. A few months from now, you will wake up to hear daily Swine Flu Reports sandwiched between weather and traffic. Not a joke!
A major focus of planning for the fall, officials say, is to avoid being swamped by a similar, possibly bigger, demand for emergency room services. Some hospital officials are advocating putting out daily swine flu bulletins - modeled after announcements on alternate-side parking or lottery numbers - about issues like when to seek treatment.
The future of New York City's health is in Pat Kiernan's able hands. Or maybe the hands of whoever's on at midnight, if the government decides to put you on a mandatory night shift at your job:
The city is considering, in a worst case, measures like canceling big gatherings and staggering work hours, said Dr. Isaac B. Weisfuse, the city's deputy health commissioner for disease control, who has been studying the flu pandemic of 1918.
