COMMENTARY: The system fears swine flu
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By Jussi Pullinen
The way in which officials and the media have reacted to the spread of swine flu in the world has caused widespread confusion.
For many people, the disease has mainly taken the form of an intense fever, but experts, who are worthy of being taken seriously, warn that Finland will soon be in something resembling a state of war.
Is this a case of crying wolf, or is the disease really more dangerous than is generally understood?
In the 1950s the swine flu would probably come and gone without any major uproar.
The Asian Flu at the end of the 1950s killed 1-4 million people worldwide. In Finland about 1,300 died. An estimated one third of all Finns came down with the disease - including about half of all schoolchildren. There was hardly any panic at that time.
Now people travel more than before, and Finland has a developed system of health care services, and people are concentrated into cities.
If one in three Finns now fall ill, the consequences will be much different than before. Even if the disease were mild, health clinics would be in trouble. In the 1950s, there were no such clinics.
Such widespread disease would also throw sand in the works of every workplace and office.
Fear that the system might shake in such a way is the reason why there is such a strong reaction to the flu.
Attitudes have also changed. In the 1950s, epidemics were not unusual. Now an uproar is guaranteed when the pandemic kills the first Finn. It will be just that much greater if the victim is a young person.
Officials will also need to prepare for the worst. Flu pandemics usually come in waves. Nobody knows if the swine flu will come back in a form that is more deadly than the present one. If this happens, the wolf cries of the summer of 2009 will not bother anyone.
More on this subject:
 Confederation of Finnish Industries EK: Companies entitled to decide their policies with regard to swine flu absences
Previously in HS International Edition:
Health officials say WHO pandemic pronouncement does not alter Finland́s preparations for swine flu (12.6.2009)
Links:
WHO: Pandemic (H1N1) 2009
Helsingin Sanomat
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