Yesterday I attended the Department of Health briefing on swine flu where the suave new secretary of state for health, Andy Burnham, and his partner in swine, Sir Liam Donaldson, gave an update. Cases have doubled in the last week and at the current rate could hit 100,000 per day. The big news, though, is that the whole of the UK had entered the “treatment phase” of the flu pandemic plan. This means that all routine screening will cease and doctors will be able to treat the flu empirically. Giving prophylaxis to flu contacts will also end. more…