Scottish Government

FOREWORD

Influenza pandemics have occurred across the world two or three times every century causing illness, deaths and severe disruption to society. History and science suggest we are likely to face other pandemics in this century, but we are unable to predict when that might happen. International concern has also been raised by the cases of avian influenza in recent years because this could be a source of an influenza pandemic.

Managing the impact of such a pandemic presents us with unique and difficult challenges if we are to save lives and keep our society running. The Scottish Executive has been working very hard to meet these challenges both across Scotland and as part of the wider UK planning.

We recognise that we all will have a part to play in dealing with a pandemic. An outbreak will place considerable pressures on a range of sectors and will require people in the public, private and voluntary sectors to work across boundaries. The wider public will also need to be made aware of how they can prepare themselves and their communities.

To assist and support organisations in their planning, this document sets out the Scottish Executive's strategic approach to dealing with an influenza pandemic, provides information on the potential impact, sets out key planning assumptions and proposes a planning framework. It updates the UK health departments' UK Influenza Pandemic Contingency Plan, published in October 2005, expanding it to illustrate the breadth of planning across many different sectors.

We hope you will find this is a useful document and welcome your comments on it.