What You Need To Know About Swine Flu (H1N1)

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When To Seek Emergency Medical Care

GET MEDICAL CARE RIGHT AWAY IF THE SICK PERSON AT HOME...

Has difficulty breathing;
Has purple or blue discoloration of the lips;
Is vomiting and unable to keep liquids down;
Has signs of dehydration, such as dizziness when standing, absence of urination, or, in infants, a lack of tears when they cry;
Has seizures (for example, is having uncontrolled convulsions);
Is less responsive than normal or becomes confused.

How Flu Spreads

The main way that influenza viruses are thought to spread is from person to person in respiratory droplets of coughs and sneezes. Influenza viruses also may be spread when a person touches respiratory droplets on another person or on an object and then touches his or her own mouth or nose (or someone else’s mouth or nose)before washing his or her hands.

PEOPLE WITH SWINE FLU WHO ARE CARED FOR AT HOME SHOULD TAKE THE FOLLOWING STEPS:

Check with their healthcare provider about any special care they might need if they are pregnant or have a health condition, such as diabetes, heart disease, asthma or emphysema;
Check with their healthcare provider about whether they should take antiviral medications;
Stay home for seven days after the start of the illness and fever is gone;
Get plenty of rest;
Drink clear fluids (such as water, broth, sports drinks, electrolyte beverages for infants) to keep from being dehydrated;
Cover coughs and sneezes. Clean hands with soap and water or an alcohol-based hand rub often and especially after using tissues and after coughing or sneezing into hands;
Avoid close contact with others — do not go to work or school ill;
Be watchful for emergency warning signs, which might indicate you need to seek medical attention.

Steps To Lessen the Spread of Influenza in the Home

When providing care to a household member who is sick with influenza, the most important ways to protect yourself and others who are not sick are as follows:

Keep the sick person in a room separate from the common
areas of the house (See “Caring for the Sick Person at Home” below);
Remind the sick person to cover his or her cough, and to clean hands with soap and water or an alcohol-based hand rub often, especially after coughing and/or sneezing;
Have everyone in the household clean their hands often, using soap and water or an alcohol-based hand rub;
Ask a healthcare provider if household contacts of the sick person, particularly those contacts that may have chronic health conditions, should take antiviral medications, such as oseltemivir (Tamiflu®) or zanamivir (Relenza®) to prevent flu.


Protect other persons in the home:

The sick person should not have visitors, other than caregivers. A phone call is safer than a visit;
If possible, have only one adult in the home take care of the sick person;
Avoid having pregnant women care for the sick person. (Pregnant women are at increased risk of influenza-related complications and immunity can be suppressed during pregnancy.);
All persons in the household should clean their hands with soap and water or alcohol-based hand rub frequently,
including after every contact with the sick person or the person’s room or bathroom;
Use paper towels for drying hands after hand washing or dedicate cloth towels to each person in the household. (For example, have different colored towels for each person.);
If possible, consideration should be given to maintaining good ventilation in shared household areas (e.g., keeping windows open in restrooms, kitchen, bathroom, etc.);
Antivirals can be used to prevent the flu, so check with your healthcare provider to see if some persons in the home should use antiviral medications.

Using Facemasks or Respirators

Avoid close contact (less than six feet away) with the sick person as much as possible;
If you must have close contact with the sick person, (for example, holding a sick infant), spend the least amount of time possible in close contact and try to wear a facemask or N95 disposable respirator;
An N95 respirator that fits snugly on your face can filter out small particles that can be inhaled around the edges of a facemask, but, compared with a facemask, it is harder to breathe through for long periods of time;
Facemasks and respirators may be purchased at a pharmacy, building supply or hardware store;
Wear an N95 respirator if you help a sick person with respiratory treatments using a nebulizer or inhaler, as directed by their doctor. Respirator treatments should be performed in a separate room, away from common areas of the house when at all possible;
Used facemasks and N95 respirators should be placed immediately in the trash so they touch nothing else;
Avoid re-using disposable facemasks and N95 respirators, if possible. If a re-usable fabric facemask is used, it should be laundered with normal laundry detergent and tumble-dried in a hot dryer;
After you take off a facemask or N95 respirator, clean your hands with soap and water or an alcohol-based hand sanitizer.

If you are a caregiver...

Avoid being face-to-face with the sick person;
When holding small children who are sick, place their chin on your shoulder so that they will not cough in your face;
Clean your hands with soap and water or use an alcohol-based hand rub after you touch the sick person or handle used tissues or laundry;
Caregivers might catch flu from the person they are caring for and then the caregiver might be able to spread the flu to others before the caregiver shows symptoms. Therefore, a caregiver should wear a mask when he or she leaves the home to keep from spreading flu to others, should one be in early stages of infection;
Talk to your healthcare provider about taking antiviral medication to prevent the caregiver from getting the flu;
Monitor yourself and household members for flu symptoms and contact a telephone hotline or healthcare provider if symptoms occur.

Placement of the Sick Person at Home

Keep the sick person in a room separate from the common areas of the house (for example, a spare bedroom with its own bathroom, if that’s possible). Keep the sickroom door closed.
Unless necessary for medical care, persons with the flu should not leave the home when they have a fever, or during the time that they are most likely to spread infection to others (seven days after onset of symptoms in adults and 10 days after onset in children).
If persons with the flu need to leave the home (for medical care, for example), they should cover their nose and mouth when coughing or sneezing and wear a loose-fitting surgical mask, if available.
Have the sick person wear a surgical mask if they need to be in a common area of the house near other persons.
If possible, sick persons should use separate bathroom, which should be cleaned daily with household disinfectant. (See “Household Cleaning, Laundry and Waste Disposal” below)

Household Cleaning, Laundry and Waste Disposal

Throw away tissues and other disposable items used by the sick person and wash hands after touching used tissues and similar waste;
Keep surfaces (especially bedside tables, surfaces in bathroom, and toys for children) clean by wiping them down with a household disinfectant;
Linens, eating utensils and dishes belonging to those who are sick do not need to be cleaned separately, but these items should not be shared without first washing thoroughly;
Wash linens (bed sheets and towels) using household laundry soap and tumble dry on hot setting. Avoid “hugging” laundry prior to washing it to prevent contamination to
yourself. Clean your hands with soap and water or alcohol-based hand rub right after handling dirty laundry;
Eating utensils should be washed either in a dishwasher or by hand with soap and water.

For More Information, call The Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention (CDC) Hotline: 1-800-CDC-INFO