Posts Tagged ‘influenza’
Influenza Season Week 5 ending February 5, 2011
Flu spreading fast, nearly all swine variety
Associated Press
updated 3:42 p.m. ET Sept. 11, 2009
msnbc.com
WASHINGTON - Influenza is circulating unusually early this year with cases in all 50 states — nearly all the swine flu variety, government health officials said Friday.
The highest concentration of flu cases is in the Southeast and a few other states, Dr. Anne Schuchat of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said at a briefing.
The good news is that testing of vaccines for swine flu show that they work with a single dose and take effect rapidly.
Stopping swine flu before it starts
By Luke Whyte
CorrectionsOne editor
At this year’s ACA summer conference, all three speakers in workshop “Managing seasonal influenza in the correctional setting” said something about your grandmother.
“It’s what grandma harked on,” said Dr. Kenneth Castro of the National Center for HIV, STD, and TB Prevention. “Wash your hands and avoid coughing people.”
They said it, because for all the talk of vaccines, quarantine and anti-viral medication, the first steps all institutions should be taking toward the prevention of a swine flu outbreak this year are as simple as using a Kleenex.
Australian ambulance service takes measures to protect staff from swine flu
July 28, 2009
by EMS1.com
NEW SOUTH WALES, Australia — In an effort to protect workers from the H1N1 influenza virus, all members of the Ambulance Service of New South Wales, Australia, are now required to wear face masks while tending to patients.
Signed into effect on Tuesday, the new Standard Operating Procedure mandates all paramedics, patient transport officers, and ambulance volunteers employ protective goggles and masks until respiratory symptoms can be excluded from patient diagnoses.
The measure is designed to maximize staff safety and minimize risk for patients, according to Ambulance Service of NSW chief executive Greg Rochford.
Webcast on influenza emergencies for EMS, Fire & Police professionals
Clyns Brands recently sponsored a webcast hosted by JEMS, Law Officer and FireRescue Magazines and was presented by Mike McElvoy, EMS coordinator for Saratoga County, N.Y., and teaches pulmonary and critical care medicine at Albany Medical College.
First it was the “swine” flu, and then, the more politically correct “novel H1N1 type A influenza.” While governments scramble to prepare and respond to the continued worldwide spread of this new illness, misinformation abounds. The public is confused and in some cases, approaching panic. You need the facts about influenza, including past, present and future outbreaks. EMS, fire and law enforcement members need information and tools to respond to influenza as professional public health partners. This webcast will tell you how.
