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Great, thanks for starting this! I have expertise as follows:
a) I'm disabled (epilepsy controlled by brain surgery, I'm still a mess and must take anticonvulsants to stay alive)
b) I'm an epidemiologist with extensive training in influenza, bioterrorism, HIV etc.
c) I'm highly trained in emergency response through training with FEMA, State of Illinois and local health departments
Regarding disabled, one of the most important things to remember is that our life-support infrastructure (access to medications, electricity for dialysis, transportation for food, whatever) may go down very quickly. A sudden, devastating pandemic will impact the workers of factories that make drugs, water treatment plant workers, operators at power plants, grocery store clerks, whatever.
Therefore, I think the disabled are required to take extra precautions for themselves:
1. Develop an emergency plan NOW! H7N9 is already evolving and will likely emerge as a virus that will not be matched by an effective vaccine, so we cannot count on vaccination to help prevent this. Instructions for developing family and personal plans are here: http://ready.gov/" rel="nofollow - http://ready.gov/
2. Communicate with your support team, including family, friends, classmates and medical service providers!! Make sure they can communicate with you and will check on you if cell phones, Internet etc. service is lost.
3. Stockpile a month or two of water, food and essential medications. This is hard for disabled people to do, I'm building up a stockpile of anticonvulsants now.
4. Do not despair! Disabled individuals such as ourselves are blessed with tenacity, creativity and a positive outlook. We will survive whatever nature throws at us.
There is a great deal of information here: http://fema.gov/plan-prepare-mitigate" rel="nofollow - http://fema.gov/plan-prepare-mitigate
Very Best, Charles R. Stack, MPH, DrPHc
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CRS, DrPH
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