Dr. Eric Toner Blog post

Here is an interesting interview with Dr. Eric Toner about pandemic planning with regards to H5N1. Dr. Toner is with the Center for Biosecurity at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. I have referenced articles from this group before. There is a lot of useful information available at the UPMC Biosecurity site, and it is frequently updated.

Dr. Toner talks about how severe a pandemic arising from the H5N1 virus could be, and compares this worst case scenario to the projections commonly used by the CDC flusurge software. In case you are interested in alternative projection models to flusurge, check out the panalysis spreadsheet.


Here is the PDF of the Toner interview

If you would prefer to listen to the audio version the links are here:
Part 1 “What is Avian Flu?” (4:23)
Part 2 “The difference in Death Rate Assumptions” (2:50)
Part 3 “Why we need Hospital Interventions” (6:03)
Part 4 “Why Not Enough is Being Done” (8:40)

You can also go to the Health Business and Policy website directly for the HTML version

Health and Business Policy has more pandemic related interviews available here.

Be aware, most of the information on the Health and Business Policy site seems to be older, from about mid 2006.

WWSEF Science Fair Results

Below is the pandemic ventilator prototype "Norman". Norman was built by one of our developers in his automation and robotics class.

This prototype is named “Norman” after Norman Burn. Norman Burn was the Chief Technician at the Department of Anesthesia at Newcastle. Norman Burn built many of the very first positive pressure ventilators. Some of his “home made” ventilators were used during the polio epidemic in Britain in 1947. (link here)

This developer is a high school student and has contributed to the Pandemic Ventilator Project right from the beginning. He has added many insights to the design of the project and did all the PLC programming for "Max" as well as his current prototype. He entered "Norman" in the Waterloo Wellington Science and Engineering Fair.


The Pandemic Ventilator at the Science Fair


He won 3 awards at this Science Fair:

• Silver Medal in the Senior Engineering Division

• The University of Ontario Institute of Technology Innovation Award for demonstrating the most innovative development, adaptation or use of technology in a science project.

• An Award of Merit
  

In addition to the awards, his project has been accepted to participate in the National Canada Wide Science Fair to be held in Ottawa Canada from May 10 to May 18th 2008.

We congratulate him on his hard work and dedication.


Receiving the Silver Medal Award
for Senior Engineering



Receiving the University of Ontario Institute of Technology
Innovation Award for Demonstrating the Most Innovative Development,
Adaptation or Use of Technology in a Science Project




Receiving the Award of Merit

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Correction

It seems there was an error made at the awards ceremony. Instead of the silver medal he was awarded, he was supposed to have received a gold medal and several university and college scholarships. So, we congratulate Jeff on his gold medal award. Here is a link to the official site.

Here are the awards he was supposed to have received:

• Award of Merit,
• Gold Medal, Senior Engineering,
• University of Ontario Institute of Technology Innovation Award,
• Conestoga College Entrance Scholarship,
• University of Guelph Entrance Scholarship,
• University of Waterloo Entrance Scholarship.
• Wilfrid Laurier University Entrance Scholarship.
  

His project is also entered in the Canada-Wide Science Fair