How do you think society would cope psychologically with an outbreak of something like the 1918 flu?

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Just that really, we're not as a society used to people becoming seriously ill or dying on large numbers and I wonder how people would react if something like the 1918 flu happened

Sounds like you are watching the same programme i am.

In answer to your question though.................we would be fucked.

bbc 2

What programme are you watching? Sounds interesting

Great. I’ll get it on iplayer

Modern Western society WOULD NOT cope
Our politicians WOULD NOT cope
luckily people like Wendy Barclay would be appointed as technocratic leaders to make decisions.

The hospitals would be even more stuffed than they are already.... literally!

Schools would probably close? Working from home would be considered

I agree Helena, I think many people would panic, we just expect medicine to be able to help and even with modern medicine the health services would be overwelmed very quickly

I'm an hcp so would be in the frontline

Firstly I think that there would quickly be an antibiotic shortage. And spread made worse by panic coupled with higher attendance in hospital and surgeries. There would be more focus on blame and political finger pointing than there would be in implementing any serious structure and plan (see brexit for evidence of this) finally as I fear we are already on the brink of civil unrest, I think it would spark serious riots and public anger, and the inevitable civil unrest.

Censorship wouldnt work not with social media.

Firstly I think that there would quickly be an antibiotic shortage
Flu is a virus.

True Ta1kin but they are used to treat secondary bacterial infections which often occur, supplementary oxygen supplies would also be a major problem as the 1918 virus severely damaged the lungs.

Ta 1 that doesn't stop people thinking they should have anti biotics

Talk in peace-I'm well aware of that. But can you honestly argue that everyone is? And that hundreds of parent wouldn't go to the doctors demanding? We already see that! Antibiotics are being unnecessarily prescribed and demanded now- without mass panic.

Anecdotally I know a huge amount of children in my dcs peers that have a course or two of antibiotics a year. If not more. I do not believe they need it.

I believe statistically there is data that proves that this is already an issue. I also believe that in a flu epidemic, before any epidemic is announced/ becomes apparent and people are just getting ill- they would flock to the doctors and demand pills. Hence I said firstly there would be an antibiotic shortage.

You’re watching what we’re watching!

Hence why people like Prof Barclay should be put in charge of the response to a flu outbreak.
I knew her a long time ago. She would make the right decisions.

I'm watching too.

We are watching as well! It’s a grim story, poor Doctor Niven, Who was ahero, drowned himself in 1926 due to depression caused partly by the huge death toll he witnessed.
The first time I heard of the Spanish flu was in an episode of Upstairs, Downstairs.

I don't think we'd cope at all. We have generations now not used to illness, expecting the NHS to have a pill for every ill and not used to the hardships previous generations faced

"Anecdotally I know a huge amount of children in my dcs peers that have a course or two of antibiotics a year. If not more. I do not believe they need it."

lucky you to have kids without any recurrent chest ear or urine infections. They don't hand antibiotics out like sweeties, but hey, obviously you know better than the GPs - who obviously, unlike you, haven't heard of and don't care about antibiotic resistance

How much of an epidemic was swine flu? I think I've forgotten all sense of reality from the time

We'd be fucked, hospitals have no beds as it is.

Violet
Swine flu was trivial.

The 1918 Flu epidemic killed twice as many more people than World War 1 fighting

My son very nearly died from swine flu. He was a fit and healthy 20 year old. By the time he was admitted his white blood cell count was wiped and his heart was failing.