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OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR
PRESS RELEASE
(for immediate release – Tuesday, November 6, 2007)
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(684) 633-4116 - Fax: (684) 633-2269 - Cell: (684) 731-8989
Gov. Togiola opens Pandemic Influenza
Interagency Workshop
(UTULEI) – Governor Togiola Tulafono today opened the Pandemic Influenza Interagency Collaboration Workshop at the Tradewinds Hotel in Tafuna.
In his opening remarks, Governor Togiola asked: “If the pandemic arrived tomorrow, will our Public Health and Medical Services be prepared to provide critical services?”
Governor Togiola told the more than 200 participants at the three-day workshop, that the most dangerous people are those that deem the workshop training as futile exercises and a waste of time.
Governor Togiola emphasized the need for key staff members to understand federal role, strategies, and agreements, as well as clearly defining leadership roles, responsibilities, and lines of authority across government and private sectors. He also said the public will be involved in the planning process as “self-reliance” might make all the difference during a crisis.
OPENING REMARKS
“If the pandemic influenza arrived on our shores tomorrow will American Samoa be prepared to protect its people? If the pandemic arrived tomorrow will our Public Health and Medical Services be prepared to provide critical services?
Will our infrastructure support our continuity of operations plans (COOP)? Will your organization know its role or will it exacerbate our response efforts?
Let me say up front, in these situations, the most dangerous people are those that deem these training futile exercises and a waste of time.
In American Samoa, often there is the belief, ‘when life is good, nothing is happening.’ The general attitude is nothing will happen, it will never happen here.
An old man continued to warn the people of a looming tragedy that would befall them but nobody paid heed and called him a senile old man and that nothing was going to happen. The outcome? Everyone perished that thought nothing would ever come of a mad man’s ravings.
We have not witnessed anything like the 1918 pandemic.
It is estimated that approximately 20 to 40 percent of the worldwide population became ill during the 1918 pandemic.
Of the 57,000 Americans who died in WWI, 43,000 died as a result of the Spanish influenza – 85% of all service-related deaths.
 Western Samoa lost 20% of its population in a short time. The pandemic killed 5.2% of Fijis population, 4.2% - 8% of Tonga’s, 4.5% of Guam’s and 10% of Tahiti’s.
American Samoa was “influenza free” when the 1918 pandemic reached the Pacific because they banned inbound and outbound travel and mail services. Given the global movement of goods, services, and people in today’s economy that option might not fit our current needs.
Today’s workshop, “Interagency-Collaboration” is about government and private sector stakeholders collaborating on a comprehensive framework that will ensure the maintenance of essential services during a crisis by addressing a host of issues that include the following:
-Key staff members will understand federal role, strategies, and agreements
-Leadership roles, responsibilities, and lines of authority across government and private sectors will be clearly defined
-The public will be involved in the planning process as “self-reliance” might make all the difference during a crisis
-Spread of disease will be controlled
-Plans will be assessed and tested
We have a situation of ‘uncoordinated efforts vs planned response.’ Departments maybe ready, but the Territory is not.
But coordinating anything is never a simple task. In a pandemic situation, the most immediate impact might not arise from the number of injuries, but from “uncoordinated efforts” between all key stakeholders. Perhaps the most challenging aspect of achieving an effective “Preparedness Plan” will be coordinating people from different segments of society whose interests, experiences, and beliefs differ.
This brings us to a more fundamental question that we might ask if we do not plan adequately and that is “do we as a society and culture believe in preparing for such a crisis?”
What social values does “Preparedness for a Pandemic Influenza” have to you? To me? To American Samoa? Is it because the Feds require us to come with one? Or do flashbacks of 9-11, SARS, and Bird Flu motivate us?
If “Preparedness” is not a socially accepted concept in American Samoa today then it is our job as leaders of our organizations to do the challenging work of helping people understand that we are not immune to the spread of influenza viruses or to bioterrorism. Buying into “Preparedness Planning” is not intended to promote paranoia among our people. Rather it aims to help us become more informed about the world we live in and to know how to live in that world.
So, how do we bring the message forward? We need to work together and be socially informed.
In a collection of state anecdotes on the impact of the 1918 influenza on states gathered for each states pandemic summit last year, one story noted how in Alaska “People were checked periodically for flu and, if healthy, were given armbands reading “OK Fairbanks Health Department”. In Arizona, each person had to wear a mask in public. Those who coughed or spat without covering their mouths were arrested. In Los Angeles, local health officials were optimistic. They were noted to have said, “If ordinary precautions are observed, there is no cause for alarm.” They could not have been more wrong. The disease exploded around the state of California.
The collection of anecdotes did not include a story from American Samoa. But it should have. We were “influenza free” during the 1918 influenza. And I wish I could say that if we implement the same preventative measures we will avoid all influenzas from reaching our shores. Unfortunately that is not the world we live in today and that is why the Joint Task Force - Homeland Defense’s work this morning on “Interagency-Collaboration” is critical to American Samoa being prepared.
When asked to tell our story, I want to say that we once again remained “influenza free” not because we closed our borders but because our “Preparedness Plan” was assessed and tested and that all stakeholders “collaborate” to create an infrastructure that met the needs of all sectors of society.
That’s the story I want to tell. A story of collaboration and effective coordination. So, lets begin our work. What story do you want to tell?”
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