|
Health Tips for During a Flu Pandemic
1. Plan for an extended stay at home during a flu pandemic.
- Ask your chain of command about how business will continue during a pandemic.
- Ask your chain of command if you can work from home during a flu pandemic.
- Plan for a possible reduction or loss of income, if you are unable to work or your place of employment is closed.
- Check with your employer or union about leave policies.
- Plan home learning activities and exercises. Have materials, such as books, on hand.
- Plan recreational activities that your children can do at home.
2. Items to have on hand for an extended stay at home:
Examples: Non-perishable foods Health and emergency supplies
Ready to eat canned meats, prescribed medical supplies such as fruits, vegetables, soups, glucose and blood pressure monitoring, protein or fruit bars, soap and water or alcohol based hand wash, dry cereal or granola Medicines for fever, such as acetaminophen, peanut butter and jelly, Tylenol, Motrin, dried fruit, nuts, trail mix, Thermometer, crackers, vitamins, canned juices, fluids with electrolytes, such as Pedialyte, bottled water, flashlight with extra batteries, canned or jarred baby food, portable radio with extra batteries, baby formula, manual can opener, pet food, garbage bags, tissues, toilet paper, disposable diapers. These are just examples, an actual list could be more extensive.
3. If someone in your home develops flu symptoms (fever, cough, muscle aches):
- Encourage plenty of fluids to drink.
- Keep the ill person as comfortable as possible. Rest is important.
- For adults with fever, sore throat and muscle aches, use ibuprofen (Motrin) or acetaminophen (aspirin).
- Do not use aspirin in children or teenagers; it can cause Reye’s syndrome, a life- threatening illness.
- Sponging with tepid (wrist-temperature) water lowers fever only during the period of sponging. Do not sponge with alcohol.
- Keep tissues and a trash bag for their disposal within reach of the patient.
- All members of the household should wash their hands frequently.
- Keep other family members and visitors away from the person who is ill.
- Contact a healthcare provider for further advice. If the ill person is having difficulty breathing or is getting worse, contact the healthcare provider right away.
4. Protect yourself against the spread of the flu and other germs and viruses:
- The main way illnesses like the flu and the common cold spread is by tiny droplets sprayed into the air when someone coughs or sneezes. Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue or your upper sleeve when coughing or sneezing. Throw away used tissues immediately.
- Wash hands thoroughly and often. That means using soap and warm water and washing for 20 seconds. Use alcohol-based hand sanitizers when hand washing is not possible.
- Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth. Germs are often spread when you touch something contaminated with germs. Germs can live for two hours or more on surfaces like doorknobs, desks or chairs.
- Avoid close contact with those who are sick.
Visit http://www.cdc.gov/germstopper/ for more information.
5. If you do come down with a cold or the flu, take these steps to get well:
- Wash your hands often.
- Stay home and keep your distance from others to protect them from getting sick, too.
- Get plenty of rest.
- Drink lots of fluids like water, tea, broth or juice.
- Take acetaminophen or ibuprofen as needed for pain or fever.
- Use a vaporizer or saline drops to relieve congestion.
Pandemic Influenza: Health Tips at: http://www.cdc.gov/germstopper/
|
