Business continuity management and pandemic influenza

Protecting vulnerable people during pandemics through home delivery of essential supplies: a distribution logistics model

Purpose

This paper studies a concept for protecting vulnerable population groups during pandemics using direct home deliveries of essential supplies, from a distribution logistics perspective. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate feasible and resource-efficient home delivery strategies, including collaboration between retailers and logistics service providers based on a practical application.

Design/methodology/approach

A food home delivery concept in urban areas during pandemics is mathematically modeled. All seniors living in a district of Berlin, Germany, represent the vulnerable population supplied by a grocery distribution center. A capacitated vehicle routing problem (CVRP) is developed in combination with a k-means clustering algorithm. To manage this large-scale problem efficiently, mixed-integer programming (MIP) is used. The impact of collaboration and additional delivery scenarios is examined with a sensitivity analysis.

Findings

Roughly 45 medically vulnerable persons can be served by one delivery vehicle in the baseline scenario. Operational measures allow a drastic decrease in required resources by reducing service quality. In this way, home delivery for the vulnerable population of Berlin can be achieved. This requires collaboration between grocery and parcel services and public authorities as well as overcoming accompanying challenges.

Originality/value

Developing a home delivery concept for providing essential goods to urban vulnerable groups during pandemics creates a special value. Setting a large-scale CVRP with variable fleet size in combination with a clustering algorithm contributes to the originality.

Behavioural responses to influenza pandemics: what do we know?

The emergence of the novel A/H1N1 virus has made pandemic preparedness a crucial issue for public health worldwide. Although the epidemiological aspects of the three 20th century influenza pandemics have been widely investigated, little is known about population behaviour in a pandemic situation. Such knowledge is however critical, notably for predicting population compliance with non pharmaceutical interventions. This paper reviews the relevant scientific literature for the 1918-1920, 1957-1958, 1969-1969 influenza epidemics and the 2003 SARS outbreak. Although the evidence base of most non pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) and personal protection measures is debated, it appears on the basis of past experience that NPIs implemented the most systematically, the earliest, and for the longest time could reduce overall mortality rates and spread out epidemic peaks. Adequate, transparent, and targeted communication on the part of public health authorities would be also of crucial importance in the event of a serious influenza pandemic.

Pandemic influenza: implications for occupational medicine

This article reviews the biological and occupational medicine literature related to H5N1 pandemic influenza and its impact on infection control, cost and business continuity in settings outside the health care community. The literature on H5N1 biology is reviewed including the treatment and infection control mechanisms as they pertain to occupational medicine. Planning activity for the potential arrival of pandemic avian influenza is growing rapidly. Much has been published on the molecular biology of H5N1 but there remains a paucity of literature on the occupational medicine impacts to organizations. This review summarizes some of the basic science surrounding H5N1 influenza and raises some key concerns in pandemic planning for the occupational medicine professional. Workplaces other than health care settings will be impacted greatly by an H5N1 pandemic and the occupational physician will play an essential role in corporate preparation, response, and business continuity strategies.