Closure of the National Pandemic Flu Service
The National Pandemic Flu Service (NPFS) closed on 11 February 2010. As we reported in the winter edition of Together, the number of people contacting the service had been gradually decreasing, as swine flu cases declined and UK flu activity has been at or below baseline levels for the time of year.
Since its launch on 23 July 2009, over 2,730,000 assessments were completed, 1,810,000 unique reference numbers (URNs) issued and 1,160,000 antivirals collected.
Ian Dalton, National Director of NHS Flu Resilience, said, “With the support of the Royal College of General Practitioners and the British Medical Association, the NPFS was very successful in easing pressure on primary care services during the busiest times of the pandemic, allowing GPs to focus on those most ill, and ensuring people had access to antivirals when they needed them.”
The service has been put into a state of dormancy, so that it will be ready to be activated again at seven days’ notice, should the need arise.
