Going Viral Adapting to Pediatric Surge During the H1N1 Pandemic.

The authors sent an electronic survey to a convenience sample of emergency physicians and nurses from U.S. emergency departments with an annual pediatric volume of more than 10,000. Before the 2009 H1N1 pandemic, more than 40% of the hospitals in the study did not have an influenza pandemic preparedness plan. Many hospitals modified their plans during the surge; some did not comply with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines. The vast majority of hospitals surveyed (91%) developed an influenza plan after the pandemic.