A family contingency plan

One interesting point out of my meeting with Cumbria's director of medicine, Prof Ashton, yesterday was the advice for families to have a contingency plan ready for if swine flu does worsen over the winter. He pointed out that during the Carlisle floods, smaller firms struggled to cope. Bigger firms had a contingency plan but smaller ones had never bothered - and on occasion paid a heavy price. And if small firms aren't prepared for the swine flu epidemic, then you can bet few families have prepared a plan. But if 30 per cent of your family is incapacitated that could mean both mum and dad in bed with flu - so who is going to take the kids to school? Who is going to get the food shopping? Time to draw up a plan - just bear in mind that, on current figures, 30 per cent of your extended family and friends will also be ill with flu!