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 The outbreak, though mild so far, presents the first real test of
the new governor's ability to coordinate state agencies in the face
of an unexpected challenge.
Local health departments said last week that they've been getting
all the help and information they need. When medicine and supplies
arrived Wednesday from the federal government, the administration
drafted multiple agencies to distribute it to hospitals and health
departments across Illinois by Friday.
The state's chief duty is sharing information.
That means coordinating so that state agencies and local health
departments know what is happening and what to do next. It also
means answering questions from local officials, asking questions of
the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and telling
the public what is going on.
Quinn frequently popped up to reassure the public that state
government was on top of the situation. He did it without seeming
eager to hog the spotlight and without botching the message that
swine flu should be taken seriously but isn't cause for panic.
That sounds simple, but it isn't. Just look at the mockery that
greeted Vice President Joe Biden's statement that he was urging his
family not to fly or even take the subway.
Dr. Damon Arnold, director of the Illinois Department of Public
Health, also was front and center last week. He jumped from news
conferences to phone calls to legislative hearings, explaining the
technicalities of testing procedures and advising people on safety.
 One frequent tip: to make sure you wash your hands thoroughly and
keep scrubbing until you finish singing "Twinkle, Twinkle."
If Arnold was occasionally hazy on facts, such as the ages of flu
patients, he came across as calm and professional.
Perhaps he remembers what happened to an Illinois health director
who didn't take his job seriously. During a 1985 salmonella outbreak
that killed six people and sickened 17,000 others, the director was
secretly on vacation in Mexico and wouldn't return to Illinois.
Then-Gov. James R. Thompson fired him when he found out.
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Arnold was appointed head of public health by former Gov. Rod
Blagojevich, and most of the procedures now being followed were
developed during Blagojevich's tenure in the wake of the 9/11
terrorist attacks, anthrax scares, and worries over SARS and avian
flu.
Dr. Mark Dworkin, who was previously the state epidemiologist for
the public health department, said intense planning means state and
local officials were ready when swine flu emerged. They knew what
trouble signs to look for, such as a sudden increase in a school's
absentee rates, and what to do to minimize spread of the disease.
The planning so closely matched the actual events, officials say,
that the Illinois National Guard had already scheduled a drill on
organizing deliveries of medication and supplies like surgical masks
and latex gloves. When the state really needed to make those
deliveries, the Guard simply moved up its drill.
"Sometimes as taxpayers we get soured on what the government is
doing with our money. But there are things they do with our money
that are really useful and important. This is an example of that,"
said Dworkin, who now teaches at the University of Illinois at
Chicago.
Sen. Linda Holmes, D-Aurora, has seen at least one school in her
district close because of swine flu and others close in towns on the
district's borders. She praised the Quinn administration for working
closely with local officials and keeping lawmakers informed.
"The chain of command here is working," she said.
[Associated Press; By CHRISTOPHER WILLS]
Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This
material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or
redistributed.
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