The Open-Air Treatment of PANDEMIC INFLUENZA

The H1N1 Spanish flu outbreak of 1918-1919 was the most devastating pandemic on record, killing between 50 million and 100 million people Should the next influenza pandemic prove equally virulent, there could be more than 300 million deaths globally, The conventional view is that little could have been done to prevent the H1N1 virus from spreading or to treat those infected; however. there is evidence to the contrary. Records from an open-air hospital in Boston, Massachusetts, suggest that some patients and staff were spared the worst of the outbreak A combination of fresh air, sunlight, scrupulous standards of hygiene, and reusable face masks appears to have substantially reduced deaths among some patients and infections among medical staff We argue that temporary hospitals should be a priority in emergency planning Equally, other measures adopted during the 1918 pandemic melt more attention than they currently receive (Am J Public Health 2009;99:S236-S242. doi 10.2105/AJPH.2008.134627)