The Ministry of Education and Research has asked Norwegian universities and university colleges to prepare for the threat of a pandemic.

After an interministerial meeting on the subject of swine flu, the Ministry of Education and Research (KD) has sent letters to every university and state university college in the country, asking them to form a crisis preparation plan. By doing this, they hope to prevent the spread of the disease, as well as ensuring that the institutions could continue to function during a pandemic.

- We take the threat of a pandemic seriously, and we must always prepare for the worst possible situation, says Jan Fredrik Schøyen, head of department at KD.

- Our goal is that society should suffer as little damage as possible during a pandemic. All ministries will therefore establish their own pandemic plans for their sectors before the summer, he says.

- Bombs simpler than pandemics

According to the Ministry of Education and Research, the worst-case scenario would be 40 percent of staff on sick leave, and they have asked the educational institutions to use this as their starting point.

Leader of the central preparation group at the University of Oslo (UiO), Frode Meinich, has already started working on the university’s crisis plan.

- If there is a risk of the disease spreading, we will have to close the canteens, and we would also have to consider closing other areas where large groups of people spend time, he says.

In an extreme situation, the whole university may have to be shut down.

- That kind of decision would have to be taken by the health authorities, and we will slavishly follow their recommendations.

- Is it necessary for the university to make its own plans when a possible pandemic would be dealt with by the authorities?

- The authorities will deal with the health aspects, but we must make sure that the institution could continue to operate during a pandemic. The central government cannot decide which exam venues we can keep open, or how we should deal with a high percentage of staff and students on sick leave, he says.

The pandemic plan will be the most comprehensive plan in the university’s regular crisis and preparation system.

- It is easier to plan how to deal with a bomb threat than to prepare for a pandemic. A pandemic is more complex, and as such demands more planning, Meinich says.

The plans must be submitted to the Ministry of Education and Research by June 15th.