Brisbane City Council Local Disaster Management Plan Chapter 12: Pandemic Sub-plan 2015 Brisbane City Council Local Disaster Management Plan Chapter 12 Pandemic Sub-plan 2015 References Table 1 summarises a comprehensive list of related documents that provide authority for Council’s Pandemic Sub-plan. Table 1 - Pandemic Sub-plan Reference List References 1. The Queensland Disaster Management Act 2003, current approved edition 2. Brisbane City Council Local Disaster Management Plan, current approved edition 3. Australian Emergency Manual Series, Manual 17 – Multi-Agency Incident Management 4. Australian Emergency Manual Series, Manual 43 – Emergency Planning 5. Queensland Local Disaster Management Guidelines, September 2012 6. Brisbane City Council Brisbane Incident Management System (BIMS), August 2011 7. Brisbane City Council Local Disaster Coordination Centre SOP, current approved edition 8. Queensland Pandemic Influenza Plan, 2009 9. 2013-2014 Queensland State Disaster Management Plan 10. National Action Plan for Human Influenza Pandemic, 2011 (http://www.dpmc.gov.au/publications/pandemic) 11. World Health Organisation Website (www.who.int/en/) 12. Australian Health Management Plan for Pandemic Influenza (www.flupandemic.gov.au/internet/panflu/publishing.nsf/) 13. Qld Government and pandemic preparedness website (http://www.qld.gov.au/health/alerts/pandemic-influenza/) Page i of ii Brisbane City Council Local Disaster Management Plan Chapter 12 Pandemic Sub-plan 2015 Table of Contents References ..................................................................................................................................... i Table of Contents...........................................................................................................................ii 1.0 Introduction .......................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Background ......................................................................................................................... 1 1.2 Context ................................................................................................................................ 1 1.3 Potential Impacts of a Pandemic ......................................................................................... 2 1.4 Council’s Pandemic Planning Framework............................................................................ 2 1.5 Assumptions........................................................................................................................ 3 2.0 Framework for Action .......................................................................................................... 4 2.1 National Arrangements ........................................................................................................ 4 2.2 Queensland Arrangements .................................................................................................. 4 2.3 Council’s Responsibilities .................................................................................................... 5 2.4 Levels of Alert ..................................................................................................................... 5 2.5 Response Phases ............................................................................................................... 5 2.6 Activation and Escalation .................................................................................................... 6 2.7 Decision-making and Communication Paths ....................................................................... 6 3.0 Council’s Role and Responsibilities ................................................................................... 7 3.1 Council Responsibilities ....................................................................................................... 7 3.2 Council Response ............................................................................................................... 7 3.2.1 Coordination Groups ........................................................................................................... 8 3.3 Significant Activities ............................................................................................................. 8 3.4 Council Tasks ...................................................................................................................... 9 3.5 Corporate Communication ................................................................................................... 9 3.6 Disaster Management Office ............................................................................................... 9 4.0 Key Issues .......................................................................................................................... 11 4.1 Adoption of a graduated response ..................................................................................... 11 4.2 Maintaining business continuity for essential services ....................................................... 11 4.3 Managing community consequences................................................................................. 11 4.4 Communication strategy .................................................................................................... 11 4.5 Coordinating Council’s response with external agencies ................................................... 12 Appendix 1: WHO Pandemic Phases ............................................................................................ 13 Appendix 2: Federal Government Pandemic Phases .................................................................... 14 Appendix 3: State Government Pandemic Phases ........................................................................ 15 Appendix 4: Acronyms and Abbreviations ..................................................................................... 16 Page ii of ii Brisbane City Council Local Disaster Management Plan Chapter 12 Pandemic Sub-plan 2015 1.0 Introduction Brisbane City Council (Council) has a legislative obligation to be able to respond to and recover from a broad range of natural and human-made disaster events. This Pandemic Sub-plan is a twin document to Council’s Corporate Pandemic Plan. The two documents should be used in conjunction and updated accordingly. 1.1 Background An influenza pandemic is a disease outbreak that occurs worldwide when: a new strain of influenza virus emerges, to which there is no, or very limited, immunity the virus causes disease in humans the virus is easily spread between humans. In the absence of immunity, a new influenza strain can spread rapidly across the globe, causing worldwide epidemics or a pandemic, with high numbers of cases and deaths. It can also be of moderate severity as seen in the H1N1 (Human Swine) pandemic in 2009. There have been regular but repeated occurrences of pandemics during the last century. The risk of a pandemic, whether it originates from the H1N1 or H5N1 (Avian) virus or some other source, will remain in the future, with the level of risk elevated by an increasingly mobile world population. Prior planning and properly coordinated response measures can minimise the impacts of a Pandemic. The principal purpose of this Plan is to outline a management framework for: 1.2 developing resilience so Council can continue to deliver essential services to the community despite pandemic conditions; fulfilling Council’s obligation to its employees to take all reasonable care to prevent their exposure to a pandemic; providing assistance to the community, within the context of a role in government, to withstand and recover from a pandemic; and ensuring management decisions and services are undertaken in coordination with the State and Federal Government’s pandemic response. Context Internationally, the peak body is the World Health Organisation (WHO) of the United Nations. WHO maintains an extensive global monitoring program for all communicable diseases, including influenza. WHO developed the Pandemic Influenza Phases of Alert (see Appendix 1). Within Australia, The Quarantine Act 1908 allows the Governor-General to declare an epidemic, providing extensive powers to the Minister for Health – powers that override State measures. Responsibility for implementing the Australian Health Management Plan for Pandemic Influenza lies with health services, emergency services and governments at all levels. It requires a whole of government response. Australia has adopted a modified form of the WHO Pandemic Influenza Phases of Alert. The national strategy (see Appendix 2) (echoed in Queensland planning documents) hinges on Containment for as long as possible. If this fails, the strategy switches to Maintenance of Essential Services. A human influenza pandemic outbreak in Queensland will be a controlled notifiable condition under the Public Health Act 2005. The Director-General of Queensland Health is responsible for the overall management and control of the response to any public health emergency; however coordination with federal counterparts and public messaging is often undertaken by the Chief Health Officer. The Queensland Pandemic Influenza Plan (May 2009) provides a basis for the State’s response to a Pandemic. Community consequences will be managed using the disaster management arrangements as specified in the Disaster Management Act 2003 (Qld). Page 1 of 16 Brisbane City Council Local Disaster Management Plan Chapter 12 Pandemic Sub-plan 2015 1.3 Potential Impacts of a Pandemic The severity of pandemics is variable; therefore it is not possible to fully predict the gravity and range of impacts that Brisbane would suffer during a future pandemic. The majority of pandemic planning (including WHO, Federal and State) is directly focussed on influenza, as this is the most likely form of pandemic. A severe influenza pandemic may: 1.4 Last for 3 months Result in 40 per cent of the population displaying clinical signs of infection Lead to 50 per cent of staff not reporting for work during the peak of the pandemic Cause 2.5 per cent of those affected to die of the disease. Council’s Pandemic Planning Framework Council’s Pandemic planning framework has the following five components: The Brisbane City Council Local Disaster Management Plan is the principal document outlining Council’s emergency response to a range of hazards and disaster events. This Pandemic Sub-plan outlines Council’s emergency response during the pandemic to assist the City and the community. The Corporate Pandemic Plan – sets out the framework for Council’s response to a pandemic. The focus of the Corporate Pandemic Plan is principally about the continuity of services. The Crisis Communication SOP addresses the roles and responsibilities for ensuring the ongoing flow of up-to-date information to stakeholders during a crisis. Page 2 of 16 Brisbane City Council Local Disaster Management Plan Chapter 12 Pandemic Sub-plan 2015 Critical Services’ Business Continuity Plan Pandemic Appendix provides contingency planning focussed at maintaining specific critical services during a pandemic. Contact Corporate Risk Management for more details. 1.5 Assumptions Council’s pandemic planning is based on the following assumptions: That there will be some warning of the pandemic. In 2009 the outbreak was first identified in Mexico with the WHO communicating the identified spread to other countries. That the pandemic’s progress will follow a linear route through the alert phases. That the Australian Government, via the Chief Medical Officer of Australia, will announce the escalation from one alert phase to another. That the community consequences will be managed in accordance with the Queensland Disaster Management Act 2003 and Council’s Disaster Management arrangements. That the Queensland Government will provide frameworks to coordinate activities across jurisdictional boundaries, including: o Activation of Queensland Disaster Management Committee on notification of suspected or confirmed cases; o Liaison with federal and local governments to ensure consistent messages; o Containment operations; o Public communication; o Maintenance of essential services; o Social distancing measures; and o Industrial relations legislation. Page 3 of 16 Brisbane City Council Local Disaster Management Plan Chapter 12 Pandemic Sub-plan 2015 2.0 Framework for Action 2.1 National Arrangements The peak national planning body is the Office of Health Protection within the Australian Government Department of Social Services. Convened by the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet in the event of an influenza pandemic, the peak Australian implementation body is the National Pandemic Emergency Committee (NPEC). The NPEC has the role of overseeing the development and implementation of the National Action Plan for Human Influenza Pandemic September 2011 (NAPHIP) and supporting the Council of Australian Governments in its role of achieving cooperation among governments. The Australian Government’s roles are to: implement the national plan ensure policies and strategies are developed beforehand to guarantee a quick response assume a central coordination role, especially with regard to national surveillance and a national response report to jurisdictions on the spread of the virus redefine priorities for vaccines and anti-virals provide leadership in virus isolation and typing, and molecular work throughout the Asia-Pacific region. While the NAPHIP outlines how the Commonwealth, State, Territories, and Local Government have agreed to work together, the detailed plan that the combined governments will follow is provided in the Australian Health Management Plan for Pandemic Influenza December 2009. 2.2 Queensland Arrangements The Queensland Pandemic Influenza Plan May 2009 outlines the State’s response to a pandemic. Implementation will be coordinated by Queensland Fire and Emergency Services and the Queensland Disaster Management Committee (QDMC) which includes representatives from each of the major State Government departments and the Local Government Association of Queensland. Queensland Health (QH) will be the lead Queensland Government agency during an influenza pandemic. QH will have a strong leadership role within QDMC, particularly because most government policy responses will have regard to expert health advice about the nature of the virus and how it can best be contained and managed. The community consequences will be managed within the disaster management framework specified in the Disaster Management Act 2003 (Qld). The Queensland Government responsibilities of relevance to Council (as outlined in the NAPHIP) are to: determine and maintain appropriate policies, legislation and plans report influenza outbreaks and action taken maintain a response and recovery capability have primary responsibility for public and animal health monitoring, surveillance and response maintain business continuity plans for the State’s essential services maintain cooperative relationships with owners and operators of critical infrastructure regarding preparedness, continued operation and recovery have primary responsibility to respond and recover from a pandemic influenza outbreak Page 4 of 16 Brisbane City Council Local Disaster Management Plan Chapter 12 Pandemic Sub-plan 2015 2.3 implement agreed preparedness strategies and administer emergency management arrangements work with local government, business and the community to respond to and recover from an influenza pandemic work with the Commonwealth Government and the local government to develop public education material. Council’s Responsibilities Brisbane City Council’s responsibilities as a local government body (as outlined in the NAPHIP) are to: 2.4 determine and maintain pandemic influenza policies and plans consistent with the role of local government and complementing relevant State, Territory and National policies and plans; maintain business continuity plans to enable the delivery of local government essential services; support National, State and Territory response and recovery by representing the needs of local communities and contributing to their continuing viability; support State and Territory emergency management frameworks; work with business and the community; in partnership with State and Territory governments, inform the public of planning and preparation under way and maintain information to the public during the response to, and recovery from, an influenza pandemic; and work with the Queensland State Government to develop public education material and ensure effective ‘bottom up’ information exchange is undertaken. Levels of Alert Australia has adopted a modified version of the WHO definitions for pandemic preparedness. The WHO monitors global pandemic risks and provides regular updates of alert phases. The Chief Medical Officer of Australia is guided by WHO and will determine the relevant Australian Phase. The WHO (Appendix 1), Australian Government (Appendix 2), and Queensland Government (Appendix 3), Pandemic Alert Phase charts can be found in this chapter’s appendices. The Australian and Queensland plans do not have an equivalent phase to match the WHO’s Phase 1 and 2. The Queensland and Australia “Alert” phase equates closely to the WHO Phase 3. It is not necessary, nor is it likely during the early stages of a pandemic, that each system of Alert would be set at an equivalent phase. Depending upon the timing, location and the severity of the outbreak a different WHO and Australian phase alert can be expected. However, it is expected that a high degree of uniformity will occur between the Australian and Queensland alert phases, since pandemics will spread rapidly through Australia. 2.5 Response Phases The national strategy relies on Delay and then Containment for as long as possible. If this strategy is unsuccessful, the strategy changes to that of Sustaining Essential Services. This may be varied in the event of a milder form of pandemic as experienced during the 2009 Human Swine Influenza outbreak, when a new PROTECT phase was developed to address a pandemic of milder impact. The strategy has identified key milestones that signal the need to consider changes in the wholeof-government operational approach during a pandemic: Identification of a new human influenza pandemic virus that has sustained human-tohuman community transmission anywhere in the world Entry of the virus into Australia Page 5 of 16 Brisbane City Council Local Disaster Management Plan Chapter 12 Pandemic Sub-plan 2015 2.6 The severity of the virus is understood, including its spread and impact on the Australian community A customised vaccine is widely available The end of the pandemic, measured by disease activity returning to seasonal levels Activation and Escalation The response actions contained in this Pandemic Sub-plan will be activated when the DELAY phase of a new pandemic virus is announced by the Australian Government. Council’s Disaster Management Arrangements may also be activated, based on advice from the Queensland Government or on direction from the Lord Mayor or the Chief Executive Officer. Escalation will be conducted to match escalation at national and/or state level. 2.7 Decision-making and Communication Paths Diagram taken from the National Action Plan for Human Influenza Pandemic (2011). Page 6 of 16 Brisbane City Council Local Disaster Management Plan Chapter 12 Pandemic Sub-plan 2015 3.0 Council’s Role and Responsibilities 3.1 Council Responsibilities Council has responsibilities in any major disaster, some with an external focus (managing the community consequences of the event), and some with an internal focus (maintaining the continuity of essential business processes). External Focus – Disaster Management Arrangements. Under the Brisbane City Council Local Disaster Management Plan, Council applies its comprehensive disaster management arrangements to manage the community consequences of any event. During a pandemic, the priorities are: to maintain the essential services which Council provides to the community; to communicate with the community about Council core business; and to support Queensland and Australian Government initiatives to manage the impacts of the pandemic. Internal Focus – Business Continuity Plans. Council has a series of Business Continuity Plans (BCPs) covering its essential business services (refer to Council’s Corporate Pandemic Plan and Corporate Risk Management Office for further details). Further information on Council’s procedures for business continuity planning is contained in SP510 Business Continuity Plans. During a pandemic, the priorities are to maintain the core functions of the direct delivery of essential services to the public, and the internal services necessary to support the external essential services. The Corporate Business Continuity Plans are as follows: Critical Community Services Customer Contact Centre Flood Warning Regulatory Services Brisbane Metropolitan Transport Management Centre Transport Bus Services Waste Management CityCat & CityFerries Services Critical Support Functions Cash Flow Commercial Services (including Payroll) Corporate Accommodation Human Resources Information & Communication Technology Media & Communications 3.2 Council Response Council’s response will change as the pandemic progresses. The basic phase response descriptions are: ALERT Being alert to the risk of a pandemic and preparing for a pandemic DELAY Once the pandemic virus emerges overseas, keeping the virus out of Australia Page 7 of 16 Brisbane City Council Local Disaster Management Plan Chapter 12 Pandemic Sub-plan 2015 CONTAIN Once the pandemic virus does arrive in Australia, limiting the early spread (LDCC activation if required) SUSTAIN Sustaining the response, while waiting for a pandemic vaccine CONTROL Controlling the pandemic spread with a vaccine RECOVER Once the pandemic is under control, returning to normal, while remaining vigilant (LDCC stand down) In the context of a milder form of influenza pandemic, a reduced response level PROTECT focuses on identifying those who are most susceptible to the virus and who require medical care and intervention to reduce suffering. In the initial ALERT, DELAY and CONTAIN phases, Council will focus on staff hygiene education and planning for escalation of the pandemic. If the containment operations are unsuccessful – which is a strong possibility based on previous pandemics – the strategy switches to Sustaining Essential Services. Council will focus on maintaining: 1. essential services it provides for the community, together with critical internal support functions, and 2. managing the community consequences of the event. If the Brisbane LDMG and/or the LDCC are stood up, priorities are likely to be: Negotiations with other government service providers to share or release Council resources Communication to the public about pandemic issues (ensuring consistency with QLD Health messaging) Special assistance to vulnerable members of the community who are significantly impacted by a reduction in government services 3.2.1 Coordination Groups As soon as the DELAY phase is announced, Council is to establish resilient management arrangements at organisational, divisional and branch level. This includes pandemic governance arrangements in the form of: a corporate Pandemic Executive Group (PEG) and/or Immediate Action Team a corporate Pandemic Working Group (PWG) various divisional/business unit pandemic groups. The purpose of the PEG is to provide policy advice and make key decisions (with direction from the Lord Mayor as required). The PEG will comprise a sub-group of the Executive Management Team, including the CEO and selected Divisional Managers and the Manager, Disaster Management Office if required. The purpose of the PWG is to coordinate planning activities across Council. The PWG will identify and analyse pandemic-specific issues, develop response options, and make recommendations for the consideration of the PEG. The PWG will meet as frequently as required, to address organisation-wide issues related to pandemic preparedness. Refer to the Corporate Pandemic Plan for more information on Council processes. 3.3 Significant Activities Important activities for Council as the risk of a pandemic escalates include: Page 8 of 16 Brisbane City Council Local Disaster Management Plan Chapter 12 Pandemic Sub-plan 2015 3.4 Communicating with staff and the community about the nature of the pandemic, the associated risks, and appropriate responses. These messages will need to be coordinated with those communicated by the Queensland and Commonwealth governments. Containing the spread of the pandemic through measures such as good personal hygiene, altered working arrangements, use of personal protective equipment, workplace entry control, increased cleaning, and higher standards of air conditioning system operation and maintenance. Ensuring the ongoing supply of vulnerable, critical goods and services from third parties, including fuel and other consumables, hygiene-related products, and telecommunications services. This may require preferential supply arrangements and/or stockpiling. Determining which Council services could be curtailed in order to ensure that essential services continue to be provided and communicating any impacts to staff and the general public. Council Tasks Council tasks are to: 3.5 Activate the PEG and the Pandemic Work Group Place the Local Disaster Management Group (LDMG) on standby Place the Local Disaster Coordination Centre (LDCC) on standby Support Queensland Government agencies in Containment operations During the “Alert” and “Delay” phases review plans for: o Adopting a graduated response keyed to the pandemic phases o Maintaining essential services at each stage of the pandemic o Maintaining core functions of Council Manage public awareness and public communication messages on areas of Council responsibility (synchronised with Federal and State policies and other lifeline providers) Maintain liaison with key State agencies and other key stakeholders Ensure Council’s response and recovery actions are coordinated and synchronised with those of other key stakeholders. Corporate Communication Corporate Communication tasks are to: 3.6 Review the Crisis Communication Plan Prepare a communication strategy for keeping Council staff informed Prepare the communication strategy for the general public Maintain liaison with State and Federal counter-parts and other key external stakeholders (e.g. NGOs) Provide a senior officer for membership of the PWG Activate the Crisis Communications Team to support the PWG, PEG or LDCC Implement the communication and public awareness strategies. Disaster Management Office The Manager, Disaster management Office is to: Maintain liaison with the DDC (District Disaster Coordinator) Ensure continuity of staff for the LDCC, if it is activated Page 9 of 16 Brisbane City Council Local Disaster Management Plan Chapter 12 Pandemic Sub-plan 2015 Provide briefings to the Lord Mayor, the LDC and the Brisbane LDMG Manage liaison with key stakeholders Attend the PEG as required Provide a senior officer for membership of the PWG. Page 10 of 16 Brisbane City Council Local Disaster Management Plan Chapter 12 Pandemic Sub-plan 2015 4.0 Key Issues The key issues to be managed by Council in the event of a pandemic are: 4.1 Adopting a graduated response Maintaining business continuity for essential services Responding to requests for assistance from the State and Federal Governments Managing community consequences Implementing communication strategy Coordinating Council’s response with external agencies. Adoption of a graduated response The response measures necessary in a severe pandemic are quite extreme. To the extent that the onset of the pandemic allows, agencies should adopt a graduated response so the public is not unduly alarmed. 4.2 Maintaining business continuity for essential services Regardless of how severe the pandemic gets, essential services must be maintained to prevent a breakdown of society and to facilitate the recovery phase. Council’s list of critical community services and critical support functions is outlined in Section 3.1 of this subplan. 4.3 Managing community consequences The social consequences of a pandemic could be widespread and the economic impacts long lasting. This will pose significant challenges to Council, which has a key role in managing community consequences. This will apply in the response phase and in the recovery phase, both of which will likely be protracted. 4.4 Communication strategy Council will need to communicate with two main groups – its own staff and the general public. While other agencies may lead on specific aspects of pandemic communication, local residents and businesses will look to Council for confirmation. Council’s messages need to be consistent with those of other agencies and tiers of government. The Federal Government, through the Department of Social Services, has prepared a comprehensive communications strategy, including the following: an engagement strategy to ensure that the news media receives timely, accurate and authoritative information a market research program to ensure that communications effectively meet public needs a public information campaign through the electronic, print and online media, supported if necessary by delivery of materials directly to households direct access information services such as call centres and websites clinical information resources to support primary care providers. The Queensland Government will implement a crisis communications model based on the counterterrorism public information arrangements, and will issue information via the following departments: Premier and Cabinet; Queensland Health; Agriculture, Fisheries & Forestry; Emergency Services; and Queensland Police Service. This model will include media releases, distribution of government publications, website information, and an information hotline. The Queensland Government Arrangements for Coordinating Public Information in a Crisis will be used to provide leadership for the many cross-government communication activities that occur should an influenza pandemic develop in Queensland. The Queensland Government will distribute Page 11 of 16 Brisbane City Council Local Disaster Management Plan Chapter 12 Pandemic Sub-plan 2015 information to maintain public safety and meet public needs, keep people informed and engaged and support Queensland Government crisis management activities. 4.5 Coordinating Council’s response with external agencies Council has various roles: as a responsible employer; as a public transport provider; as a regulator; and as a regional leader. Each role will place different demands on the organisation in a pandemic and in each case Council will want its actions and strategies to be coordinated with other similar agencies. Key relationships will be with Queensland Health via the Chief Human Resources Officer and Queensland Fire and Emergency Services via the Manager, Disaster Management Office. In particular Council has a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Qld Department of Agriculture, Fisheries & Forestry to assist with the identification and removal of backyard poultry in the event of H5N1 Avian Influenza being identified in them. Page 12 of 16 Brisbane City Council Local Disaster Management Plan Chapter 12 Pandemic Sub-plan 2015 Appendix 1: WHO Pandemic Phases Page 13 of 16 Brisbane City Council Local Disaster Management Plan Chapter 12 Pandemic Sub-plan 2015 Appendix 2: Federal Government Pandemic Phases Australian phase Description ALERT A novel virus with pandemic potential causes severe disease in humans who have had contact with infected animals. There is no effective transmission between humans. Novel virus has not arrived in Australia. DELAY Effective transmission of novel virus detected overseas in either: - Small cluster of cases in one country overseas. - Large cluster(s) of cases in only one or two countries overseas. - Large cluster(s) of cases in more than two countries overseas. Novel virus not detected in Australia. CONTAIN Pandemic virus has arrived in Australia causing small number of cases and/or small number of clusters. PROTECT SUSTAIN Pandemic virus is established in Australia and spreading in the community. CONTROL Customised pandemic vaccine widely available and is beginning to bring the pandemic under control. RECOVER Pandemic controlled in Australia but further waves may occur if the virus drifts and/or is re-imported into Australia. A pandemic virus which is mild in most but severe in some and moderate overall is established in Australia This information is current for 14 January, 2014 This information was issued on 06 January, 2011 Page 14 of 16 Brisbane City Council Local Disaster Management Plan Chapter 12 Pandemic Sub-plan 2015 Appendix 3: State Government Pandemic Phases Pandemic influenza - Australian phases Australian Phase Description Key Government Objective Alert A new flu virus with pandemic potential causes severe disease in humans who have had contact with infected animals. There is no effective transmission between humans. The new virus has not arrived in Australia. To be alert to the pandemic risk and prepare for a pandemic Delay Small clusters of human infection with the virus overseas. Virus is becoming increasingly better adapted to humans, but may not yet be fully adapted (substantial pandemic risk). Delay the virus arriving in Australia Contain Pandemic virus has arrived in Australia causing a small number of cases. Limit the spread of the virus Protect A new disease of moderate severity (mild in most but severe in some) is spreading in Australia. To identify the people in whom disease may be severe and provide medical care and interventions to reduce suffering Sustain Pandemic virus is established in Australia and is spreading in the community. Sustain the response while waiting for a pandemic vaccine to be developed Control Customised pandemic vaccine is widely available. Control the pandemic with a vaccine Recover Pandemic is controlled in Australia but further waves may occur. Return to normal while remaining vigilant Page 15 of 16 Brisbane City Council Local Disaster Management Plan Chapter 12 Pandemic Sub-plan 2015 Appendix 4: Acronyms and Abbreviations BCP Business Continuity Plan Brisbane LDMG Brisbane Local Disaster Management Group Council Brisbane City Council DDC District Disaster Coordinator H1N1 Swine Flu H5N1 Avian Flu LDC Local Disaster Coordinator LDCC Local Disaster Coordination Centre LM Lord Mayor MDMO Manager, Disaster Management Office MOU Memorandum of Understanding NAPHIP NGO National Action Plan for Human Influenza Pandemic, September 2011 (sometimes referred to as NAP in other Government documents) Non-Government Organisation NPEC National Pandemic Emergency Committee PEG Pandemic Executive Group PWG Pandemic Working Group QDMC Queensland Disaster Management Committee QFES Queensland Fire and Emergency Services QH Queensland Health SOP Standard Operating Procedure WHO World Health Organisation Page 16 of 16