Tis the Season for Sneez’in

1. Tis the Season for Sneez’in Patient, Visitor and Staff Infections

3. How Do You Know if You Have a Cold or Influenza?

4. What is different about Swine Flu? • Swine Flu or the H1N1 virus is highly infectious. • This disease is extremely contagious. • It can be deadly in humans. • The spread of this disease has already occurred in Mexico and across the U.S. • This H1N1 virus appears to be quite different from all other H1N1 viruses before it. • Pigs, which initially carry the disease, can be simultaneously infected by swine, human and avian viruses which provides the opportunity for a genetic swap between viruses.

5. Symptoms can be the same!

6. Infection Control – What we need to do to protect our residents and staff! Use your facility Pandemic Flu Plan and Infection Control Manual to guide you through the vigilant task of keeping people healthy during this outbreak. CDC Respiratory Poster for use at doors. Print for reference! • Contact and make plans with key public health, healthcare and community partners. • Implement surveillance for pandemic influenza for new residents, existing residents and staff – use the Pandemic Flu assessment form. • Constantly reinforce infection control procedures to prevent spread. • Provide education for residents, visitors and staff – Q &A handout Internal and External Communication is Key

7. Top Ten Influenza Plan Checklist • Identify essential functions, who performs them and suppliers of critical materials. Make alternate plans. • Inform employees about plan, explain policies and procedures, provide clear and frequent communication. • Plan how to operate your facility if there is significant staff absenteeism. • Protect your facility and residents by asking sick employees to stay home. • Plan for a surge of residents and increased demands for your services. • Make plans to screen residents for signs and symptoms of febrile respiratory illness. • Take steps to protect staff caring for residents with swine flu by use of respiratory and eye protection for all patient care activities. • Provide information on where to obtain immunization against seasonal flu and swine flu to visitors and staff. • Make certain to know the pandemic planning and response activities of your local hospitals, other facilities and local public health in your community. • Plan now so you will know where to turn for reliable, up-to-date information on your local community. Monitor CDC H1N1 Flu website, local health department website and state health department website.

8. Monitoring, tracking, reporting • Educate staff that prior to reporting to work employees experiencing symptoms of respiratory illness including temperatures of 100.4º or higher must call. • Staff reporting illness while on duty will be assessed followed by determination of actions and duties. • Completion of “Assessment of Flu-Like Illness” Form via the phone for all suspected influenza-like illness. • Suspected cases must stay home or return home and contact their personal physician to determine if testing and medication are necessary. Stay home until MD says or cannot return to work for at least 5 days after onset of symptoms and at least 24 hours after temperature returns to normal. (This policy will be determined by each facility). Return to work authorized by DON or designee. • Track cases of confirmed infection on “Incidence of Employees with Known Influenza”.

9. Be Prepared for a Range of Situations The true impact of novel H1N1 flu outbreaks in the coming months will not be known until it happens. Be prepared for a possibility that your facility will have significant increased demand for services and the possibility that the fall, winter and spring 2010 outbreak may have greater impact than the outbreak of spring, 2009.  Also sign up to receive regular updates about novel H1N1 influenza, emerging infectious diseases, and other emergency preparedness and response information by going to www.emergency.cdc.gov/clinregistry.