In Case Of Emergency, Read Blog

I don’t think I know of any more effective example of citizen action on public emergency preparedness than the Flu Wiki. It is a remarkable resource for helping people prepare and respond to the pandemic flu (and other emergencies), and it has been created by and for citizens. 

Greg Dworkin, a pediatrician from Connecticut, is one of the three co-editors and founders. I had the great pleasure to meet Greg during a pandemic simulation exercise at the Centers For Disease Control in Atlanta earlier this year, and I have a learned a lot from him since. If you have not already, I recommend everyone take a look at the Flu Wiki at www.fluwikie.com to find out more about pandemic preparedness. But it will also show you the potential of the user (or citizen)-generated web in the emergency/disaster area. As the Flu Wiki itself explains:

“The purpose of the Flu Wiki is to help local communities prepare for and perhaps cope with a possible influenza pandemic. This is a task previously ceded to local, state and national governmental public health agencies. Our goal is to be: a reliable source of information, as neutral as possible, about important facts useful for a public health approach to pandemic influenza.”

“…No one, in any health department or government agency, knows all the things needed to cope with an influenza pandemic. The world is filled with competent others who are likely to have credible and useful information about some aspect of each of these tasks. By pooling and sharing our knowledge, we hope to advance both preparation for and the ability to cope with events as they unfold.”

“Flu Wiki is not meant to be a substitute for planning, preparation and implementation by civil authorities, but instead is a parallel effort that complements, supports and extends those efforts. And while there are a small group of editors who will continue to administer and maintain the Wiki, it is the users of Flu Wiki who will shape its utility and relevance based on the contributions they make.” 

In this daily segment of “What Should We Tell The Public?”, Greg recommends citizens check web resources — whether they be government sites, wikis or blog — in advance to help them prepare for and then respond to major emergencies such as an influenza pandemic.

GREG DWORKIN, FLU WIKI