vt.mathgirl
Well-known member
Found this in the Brattleboro Reformer.
Influmation
By RICHARD DAVIS
It looks like the American public has finally come to understand that influenza is a potentially deadly disease. Having the threat of an epidemic with its predictable media exposure helps. However, along with the disease, there is also an epidemic of fear and misinformation.
This is my attempt to lay out a few facts and give people some basic information about the flu. I am not an expert, but I will point you to resources developed by experts.
If you want the most up to date and reliable information about the flu and treatment, including the so-called seasonal flu and the H1N1 strain, your best source of information is the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Web sites are: www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu , www.cdc.gov/flu.
The H1N1 flu strain, the swine flu, is getting the most attention because it has behaved in way that is different than the yearly seasonal flu. People have contracted this strain at unpredictable times and the populations most at risk are younger people and pregnant women.
About 60 percent of the people who have died as a result of H1N1 had underlying medical problems that made them more vulnerable. But the troubling fact about H1N1 is that the other 40 percent were healthy young people who contracted the flu and were victim to a cascade of events that spiraled out of control so quickly that the tools of modern medicine were of no help.
In addition to the threat of H1N1, we will also have to deal with the yearly threat of seasonal flu strains. They are two separate diseases so vaccination against one does not protect against the other. Some people will need both vaccines and others may not.
Experts at the CDC believe anyone born before 1950 may have developed some degree of immunity against H1N1 and that is why vaccination is not a high priority for older people. The best way to deal with the flu is not to contract it in the first place. That may sound flip, but there a lot of things people can do to keep them off of the victims list this fall and winter.
We all have a responsibility not to spread disease, whether it is the flu or some other communicable disease. When it comes to the flu, stay home and stay away from other people if you have typical flu-like symptoms. The flu is most contagious when fever is present and the risk of spreading it diminishes after fever is gone.
There are also economic issues that cloud the picture. Experts advise people to stay home from work if they have flu symptoms and they are asking employers to be supportive. But there are a lot of people who work part-time without benefits such as sick time. Many of them live from paycheck to paycheck. They will have to decide whether it is more important to buy food and pay for rent and heat or to prevent the spread of the flu. That is a tough decision.
Then there are the hospitals, and emergency rooms in particular, to consider. It doesn't take that many people with flu-like symptoms to overwhelm a hospital emergency room. In fact, Dr. Christopher Schmidt, an ER doctor at Brattleboro Memorial Hospital told an audience at a flu information forum last week that three or four patients coming in every hour for a few hours would create a major problem.
It's not that the hospital can't treat these people, it's that having so many people in the ER with a communicable disease makes it nearly impossible not to have the ER become a source of spreading the flu. Thankfully, BMH has done its homework and they have developed a plan if such a scenario plays out. They will set up a secondary screening and treatment area away from the ER to treat people seeking care for flu-like symptoms.
The Vermont Health Department has also been very busy developing plans and working with schools and the health care community. They are one of the best sources of information about flu clinics and the availability of flu vaccine. You can contact them through the state 211 help line or call local Health Department offices.
Our local ambulance service, Rescue, Inc., has also been doing a great deal of work preparing for all of the possible scenarios that a flu outbreak might create. They have cranked up training and preparedness to high levels.
Experts agree that most people who contract the flu will be able to ride it out at home with common sense. Try to drink enough fluids and rest. Call your primary care health care provider for advice.
There are a few danger signs to look for that do warrant a trip to the ER according to the CDC:
In children
-- Fast breathing or trouble breathing
-- Bluish skin color
-- Not drinking enough fluids
-- Not waking up or not interacting
-- Being so irritable that the child does not want to be held
-- Flu-like symptoms improve but then return with fever and worse cough
-- Fever with a rash
In adults
-- Difficulty breathing or shortness of breath
-- Pain or pressure in the chest or abdomen
-- Sudden dizziness
-- Confusion
-- Severe or persistent vomiting
The more each of us does to prevent the spread of the flu the fewer people will suffer and die. In addition to seeking out community resources for accurate information, get vaccinated.
Richard Davis is a registered nurse and executive director of Vermont Citizens Campaign for Health. He writes from Guilford and welcomes comments at rbdav@comcast.net.
http://www.reformer.com/columnists/ci_13606020
Influmation
By RICHARD DAVIS
It looks like the American public has finally come to understand that influenza is a potentially deadly disease. Having the threat of an epidemic with its predictable media exposure helps. However, along with the disease, there is also an epidemic of fear and misinformation.
This is my attempt to lay out a few facts and give people some basic information about the flu. I am not an expert, but I will point you to resources developed by experts.
If you want the most up to date and reliable information about the flu and treatment, including the so-called seasonal flu and the H1N1 strain, your best source of information is the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Web sites are: www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu , www.cdc.gov/flu.
The H1N1 flu strain, the swine flu, is getting the most attention because it has behaved in way that is different than the yearly seasonal flu. People have contracted this strain at unpredictable times and the populations most at risk are younger people and pregnant women.
About 60 percent of the people who have died as a result of H1N1 had underlying medical problems that made them more vulnerable. But the troubling fact about H1N1 is that the other 40 percent were healthy young people who contracted the flu and were victim to a cascade of events that spiraled out of control so quickly that the tools of modern medicine were of no help.
In addition to the threat of H1N1, we will also have to deal with the yearly threat of seasonal flu strains. They are two separate diseases so vaccination against one does not protect against the other. Some people will need both vaccines and others may not.
Experts at the CDC believe anyone born before 1950 may have developed some degree of immunity against H1N1 and that is why vaccination is not a high priority for older people. The best way to deal with the flu is not to contract it in the first place. That may sound flip, but there a lot of things people can do to keep them off of the victims list this fall and winter.
We all have a responsibility not to spread disease, whether it is the flu or some other communicable disease. When it comes to the flu, stay home and stay away from other people if you have typical flu-like symptoms. The flu is most contagious when fever is present and the risk of spreading it diminishes after fever is gone.
There are also economic issues that cloud the picture. Experts advise people to stay home from work if they have flu symptoms and they are asking employers to be supportive. But there are a lot of people who work part-time without benefits such as sick time. Many of them live from paycheck to paycheck. They will have to decide whether it is more important to buy food and pay for rent and heat or to prevent the spread of the flu. That is a tough decision.
Then there are the hospitals, and emergency rooms in particular, to consider. It doesn't take that many people with flu-like symptoms to overwhelm a hospital emergency room. In fact, Dr. Christopher Schmidt, an ER doctor at Brattleboro Memorial Hospital told an audience at a flu information forum last week that three or four patients coming in every hour for a few hours would create a major problem.
It's not that the hospital can't treat these people, it's that having so many people in the ER with a communicable disease makes it nearly impossible not to have the ER become a source of spreading the flu. Thankfully, BMH has done its homework and they have developed a plan if such a scenario plays out. They will set up a secondary screening and treatment area away from the ER to treat people seeking care for flu-like symptoms.
The Vermont Health Department has also been very busy developing plans and working with schools and the health care community. They are one of the best sources of information about flu clinics and the availability of flu vaccine. You can contact them through the state 211 help line or call local Health Department offices.
Our local ambulance service, Rescue, Inc., has also been doing a great deal of work preparing for all of the possible scenarios that a flu outbreak might create. They have cranked up training and preparedness to high levels.
Experts agree that most people who contract the flu will be able to ride it out at home with common sense. Try to drink enough fluids and rest. Call your primary care health care provider for advice.
There are a few danger signs to look for that do warrant a trip to the ER according to the CDC:
In children
-- Fast breathing or trouble breathing
-- Bluish skin color
-- Not drinking enough fluids
-- Not waking up or not interacting
-- Being so irritable that the child does not want to be held
-- Flu-like symptoms improve but then return with fever and worse cough
-- Fever with a rash
In adults
-- Difficulty breathing or shortness of breath
-- Pain or pressure in the chest or abdomen
-- Sudden dizziness
-- Confusion
-- Severe or persistent vomiting
The more each of us does to prevent the spread of the flu the fewer people will suffer and die. In addition to seeking out community resources for accurate information, get vaccinated.
Richard Davis is a registered nurse and executive director of Vermont Citizens Campaign for Health. He writes from Guilford and welcomes comments at rbdav@comcast.net.
http://www.reformer.com/columnists/ci_13606020
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