Now, in retrospect, and I am talking about only a 10-year period, we really haven't conquered infectious diseases at all. In fact, it has re-emerged with a vengeance. This has only been magnified by the concurrent growing problems of drug resistance (i.e., vancomycin-resistant enterococcus, AIDS/TB cases), bioterrorism (i.e., anthrax), new diseases (i.e., SARS), and new realities, like we are really part of a global community (i.e., West Nile, Marburg Hemorrhagic Fever). Of course, antibiotics, meant for bacterial and not viral infections, have been mis- and overused so much that our bodies can no longer fight against diseases caused by organisms not susceptible to available therapies. So, it's not like Public Health has not been vigilant, only now we need to be more vigilant than ever.

Finally, with problems of this past season's flu vaccine shortages and the growing threat of a possible pandemic of the avian flu (I am not being an alarmist, if you want to see something along "those" lines, watch Elia Kazan's classic, "Panic in the Streets," or "Outbreak," in which Dustin Hoffman freaks out big time), we must face the fact that influenza probably needs more attention than it is currently getting, and in a more focused fashion. I'll do my part and keep my visitors informed. Information about the H2N2, and other infectious diseases can be found on my Infectious Diseases Resources Page (which unfortunately keeps growing...). I should mention that the CDC has done a great job in keeping the public informed about the latest developments and news pertaining to a broad area of Public Health issues in a timely fashion. And, I should add that the National Library of Medicine's MedlinePlus pages are the best around in providing links and resources to a variety of credible resources on the Net for any particular Health or Public Health topic it tackles.