Palmetto Parent 2009 November Issue : Page 20
Linda Miller, the school nurse at Dutch Fork Elemen- tary School, shows student Taylor Perkins the proper way to wash her hands. One way to avoid the fl u: Wash your hands. Interested in a vaccine? Visit www.scdhec.gov to fi nd out where you can receive one. FLU S E A S O N Vaccines are an option, but don’t underestimate good hygiene habits Story by Chris Worthy Photos by Cindy Hosea C indy Richards is singing a familiar refrain these days: Wash your hands and stay home if you are sick. Richards, supervisor of nursing services for School District Five of Lexington and Richland Counties, has become an evan- gelist of sorts for germ prevention, hoping to stem the tide of a fl u season like none in recent memory. “Good hand hygiene is huge,” Richards said. “Hand washing is best, but hand sani- tizer is better than nothing at all.” While novel H1N1 infl uenza, also known as swine fl u, is here, experts say parents can still take steps to help protect their children. South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control spokesperson Th om Berry said the severity of the H1N1 outbreak remains to be seen. 20 Palmetto Parent What you need to know about the fl u South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control spokesperson Thom Berry suggests parents discuss fl u vaccines with their pediatricians to determine if they are right for their children and, if so, when and how many doses should be administered. If you can’t afford the fl u vaccine, contact your local health department. For locations, visit www.scdhec.gov. Other tips to help protect your family: n Teach children to wash their hands thoroughly with warm water and plenty of soap, scrubbing hands for as long as it takes to sing “Happy Birthday.” n Carry alcohol-based hand sanitizer with you for times when soap and water are unavailable. n Use hand sanitizer and wipes placed in grocery stores, churches and other locations to reduce the spread of germs. n At home, frequently disinfect common surfaces such as phones, door knobs, TV remotes and faucets. www.palmettoparent.com November 2009
Flu Season
Chris Worthy
Vaccines are an option, but don’t underestimate the importance of washing your hands
Cindy Richards is singing a familiar refrain these days: Wash your hands and stay home if you are sick.
Richards, supervisor of nursing services for School District Five of Lexington and Richland Counties, has become an evangelist of sorts for germ prevention, hoping to stem the tide of a flu season like none in recent memory.
“Good hand hygiene is huge,” Richards said. “Hand washing is best, but hand sanitizer is better than nothing at all.”
While novel H1N1 influenza, also known as swine flu, is here, experts say parents can still take steps to help protect their children.
South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control spokesperson Thom Berry said the severity of the H1N1 outbreak remains to be seen.
“What makes H1N1 ‘novel’ is that it is new and different,” Berry said. “It hasn’t been seen before, so no one has immunity to it. H1N1 will become another strain that we see on a regular basis.”
But facing the first winter of the new strain’s widespread impact has families searching for answers.
“A lot of the guidance we are giving parents about H1N1 is the same as regular seasonal flu,” Berry said.
His first recommendation is for two flu vaccinations — the seasonal flu vaccine, which is widely available, and a vaccine against the H1N1 strain, which is expected to be available in sufficient amounts.
“Don’t stop at one,” Berry said. “You need protection from the regular flu that we know is coming and then a separate specific vaccine for the H1N1 strain. It’s not a case of one and done.”
Parents of children younger than age 10 may be advised to get more than one dose of each vaccine for their children.
Artealia Gilliard, a spokesperson for the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta, said vaccinations will be a critical component in halting the spread of both kinds of flu.
“The single best thing you can do is to receive the flu vaccine — the seasonal flu vaccine and the H1N1 vaccine when it is available,” she said.
Beyond vaccinations, prevention measures are quite basic, but effective.
“Wash your hands frequently with soap and water,” Berry said. “Rub your hands together for at least 20 seconds or the amount of time it takes to sing the ‘Happy Birthday’ song. Hand sanitizers are effective if soap and water isn’t readily available.”
In addition to hand washing, Richards also encourages overall health maintenance to boost children’s immunity.
“Good nutrition and plenty of sleep,” she said. “Make sure children eat healthy.”
If the flu does strike, take steps to avoid sharing it with others.
“If you are sick, stay home,” Berry said. “All of us have this ethic built in that we need to go to work or my child needs to go to school. Don’t take you child to day care if he is sick, especially if he has a fever.”
Richards said children will be able to make up missed work and they should stay home if they have the flu.
“If they have a temperature that is 100 degrees or higher, we want them to stay home until it is normal for 24 hours without something to bring it down,” she said.
If children are taking fever reducers such as acetaminophen or ibuprofen, Richards said parents are unable to be sure their fever is normal.
School absences or even the potential for school closings in the event of a large outbreak must be planned for in advance, Gilliard said.
“We know it’s hard on the family financially, but we call it shared responsibility,” she said. “You are not just responsible for your children’s health; children with preexisting conditions could have it much worse.”
And adding a little extra cleaning during flu season can also help. Berry advises extra sanitizing of common surfaces such as door knobs, tables, faucets, computer keyboards, phones, shopping cart handles and exercise equipment.
Parents should also teach children to cough and sneeze into their elbow or a tissue rather than into their hands.
“As soon as you can thereafter, throw away the tissue and wash your hands,” Berry said.
What’s in the flu vaccine?
To learn more about approved flu vaccines and their ingredients, visit http://www.fda.gov/BiologicsBloodVaccines/Vaccines/ApprovedProducts/ucm181950.htm. For a list of flu vaccine locations, visit www.scdhec.gov.
What you need to know about the flu
South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control spokesperson Thom Berry suggests parents discuss flu vaccines with their pediatricians to determine if they are right for their children and, if so, when and how many doses should be administered. If you can’t afford the flu vaccine, contact your local health department. For locations, visit www.scdhec.gov. Other tips to help protect your family:
* Teach children to wash their hands thoroughly with warm water and plenty of soap, scrubbing hands for as long as it takes to sing “Happy Birthday.”
* Carry alcohol-based hand sanitizer with you for times when soap and water are unavailable.
* Use hand sanitizer and wipes placed in grocery stores, churches and other locations to reduce the spread of germs.
* At home, frequently disinfect common surfaces such as phones, door knobs, TV remotes and faucets.
10 symptoms of the flu
For up-to-date information on the spread of flu, symptoms and recommendations, visit www.flu.gov. Updates are also available on Facebook and Twitter. The Centers for Disease Control say key indicators of the flu can include:
* fever (though not everyone will have a fever)
* cough
* sore throat
* runny or stuffy nose
* body aches
* headache
* chills
* fatigue
* diarrhea
* vomiting
It’s an emergency when…
According to the Centers for Disease Control, the following may be indicators of an emergency situation. If any of the following symptoms appear in children seek emergency care immediately:
* 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, seek emergency care for:
* Difficulty breathing or shortness of breath
* Pain or pressure in the chest or abdomen
* Sudden dizziness
* Confusion
* Severe or persistent vomiting
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