Critical incident managers from northern Manitoba aboriginal reserves are in Winnipeg this week to co-ordinate their response to the swine flu outbreak.

Staff from about 30 First Nations will be studying pandemic management and communication strategies. Some northern communities have been hit hard by swine flu.

Sydney Garrioch, grand chief of the northern chiefs, said northern communities need to maximize their pandemic response systems. "It's desperately needed," he said of the planning and co-ordination session. "Some communities don't have an organized system at all to work with and they have very limited resources or infrastructure in place."

The planning session starts Monday and runs until Thursday.