Denis: Swine flu remedy lies entirely with the NHS

Jul 13 2009 By Denis Kilcommons

NOT long ago we were joking about a threatened swine flu pandemic ... you’ll have to use oinkment; you’ll come out in rashers ... the gags themselves were contagious.

Now it seems to be not "if" but "when" the pandemic arrives and yet most people view the prospect with disinterest. We’re more bothered about the weather or the cricket.

A discussion with a friend the other day had me investigating the whole question in rather more depth than the headlines we tend to glance over.

He was worried because he has a young son and was unable to buy Tamiflu - the drug of NHS choice to treat swine flu - at the chemist. He wanted to have it at hand as a precautionary measure and was prepared to pay for it but it is simply not available except through the NHS with a doctor’s prescription.

Tamiflu is not a preventative; it alleviates the symptoms of the virus but does so with great vigour. Graeme Laver, the Australian biochemist who helped develop it, says it is most effective when given very soon - six to 12 hours - after the first symptoms are experienced.

The Government are stockpiling the drug and will control its use when the pandemic arrives. There are sensible reasons for regulating its release.

The drug may be used too soon or inappropriately which could render it ineffectual when the real bug comes along.

The unscrupulous could buy it in large quantities to re-sell on the black market when demand surges.