Epidemics could cripple NHS

The report warns of the risks of Sars and other diseases hitting Britain

The NHS may not be able to cope if Sars or similar infectious diseases hit England, it has been claimed.

The House of Lords science and technology committee said key parts of the health service were under-funded, over-stretched and badly organised.

It has called for urgent action, including extra money and more doctors, to ensure the NHS can deal with a major outbreak.

It has also suggested that the government should set up a centre manufacturing vaccines against various illnesses to ensure Britain has adequate supplies in the event of an epidemic, rather than having to rely on supplies from abroad.

Committee chairman Lord Soulsby suggested it was only a matter of time before a serious epidemic hit this country.

Disease threats

In a report called Fighting Infection, the committee highlighted the ongoing threat from diseases like Sars and the West Nile virus.

Sars has claimed more than 800 lives and affected over 8,000 people since it emerged late last year.

The UK response to Sars showed that we do have effective measures in place to protect the public from new and emerging infectious diseases Department of Health spokesman Government may make vaccines

The West Nile virus, which is normally only found in parts of Africa and Asia, killed almost 300 people in the United States last year.

The committee also warned of the potential dangers of a new virulent strain of influenza and bio terrorism.

The last global flu pandemic in 1918 claimed over 70 million lives. Many scientists believe it is only a matter of time before another powerful strain emerges.

The anthrax attacks in the US in 2001, which left five people dead, have raised fears that terrorists could be trying to get their hands on similarly deadly biological or chemical agents.

The report suggests the health service does not have the capacity to deal with some of these threats on a large scale.

"If this country were to experience a major outbreak of an infection the services may not be able to cope: there is not enough surge capacity," it warned.

"Without improvements, we fear that this country will suffer from major epidemics and will continue to see infectious diseases take its toll in economic terms, in suffering and in lives."

National response

The committee called for new infection centres to be established across England.

These would be staffed by infection specialists, who would be expected to improve collaboration between researchers and hospitals.

The government must act now to improve services Lord Soulsby

They would also be responsible for disease surveillance and studying animal diseases in case they cross the species barrier to humans.

It also called on the government to address the serious shortage of doctors working in this area.

An estimated 70 infectious disease consultants work in the NHS. Experts believe this number falls far short of what is needed.

The committee also suggested that ministers should ensure the NHS has guaranteed access to vaccines in the event of a major outbreak of a preventable disease.

"We should not rely only on pharmaceutical companies," Lord Soulsby said.

He suggested the Health Protection Agency (HPA) could be given responsibility for manufacturing key vaccines.

The committee recommended that the HPA, which was created in April, should be given responsibility for coordinating and overseeing preparations to deal with any major epidemic.

Lord Soulsby said: "The government must act now to improve services that protect us from infection.

"We can never conquer infection, but we must be better equipped to fight it and to tackle infections like West Nile virus and Sars."

Well prepared

Dr Pat Troop, chief executive of the Health Protection Agency, said it was working both nationally and internationally to ensure health services could deal with any epidemic.

"There is no doubt that infectious diseases pose a significant threat to our health in the 21st century," she said.

"The ease of global travel, new and re-emerging diseases, and resistance to antibiotics all contribute to this threat, but while there is a lot of work to do, we are in a better position than ever to tackle a major outbreak."

The Department of Health welcomed the report and said it would consider its findings.

But a spokesman said contingency measures were already in place and were effective.

"The UK response to Sars showed that we do have effective measures in place to protect the public from new and emerging infectious diseases," he said.

"Contingency planning for outbreaks and epidemics of infectious diseases is an ongoing activity with many exercises being held to test the robustness of plans and inform their further development."