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With the flu season now underway and more and more serious flu cases seeking help in emergency rooms and clinics, there is need for guidelines. The other non flu patients must be protected from the rapid spread of the infection. It is unconscionable to not plan for separating the flu patients from the regular patients. Most hospitals have not only planned for dealing for worse case scenarios. Hopefully most of these will not be needed, but they must be read for implication if necessary. Get the full list of plans as recommended by CDC to better understand how to implement plans for your own facility if you have not already done so. Check out

flu dot gov.

HEALTH CARE WORKERS are urged to stay home if they have the symptoms of the flu. In the meantime all healthcare workers are to get vaccinated. They are required to get vaccinated and if they refuse they must sign a form stating they refused. This bypasses any possible after regrets should and disastrous events later occur. The first line of defense at any hospital is taking care of their employees. They are needed. How can a hospital carry on if half of their employees are out sick?

ELIMINATING POTENTIAL EXPOSURES is the highest on the list of prevention. This works by not allowing hospital visits with those suspected of harboring the H1N1 flu with mild symptoms that have no other health complications, postponing elective visits for patients who are scheduled with coughs, sore throats or fever, denying visitors to hospitals with any of these symptoms. Yet, for this to work communication between the hospital and the community about the reasoning behind their plan for controlling H1N1 is necessary. This is best done by adequate use of television and newspapers. It is important that all understand this is nothing personal but a means of defeating H1N1.

SCREENING ALL PATIENTS for fever, coughs, sore throats before entry into the emergency rooms. A triage center where all suspected flu victims will be separated from the usual emergency room visitors. Many hospitals are shunting these suspected cases off to separate rooms, or even separate buildings, where they can be examined for possible H1N1 before being released. Blood work, even chest x-rays are sometimes taken. The Health care workers are protectively dressed with masks as well as the suspected H1N1 sufferers.

KEEPING PATIENTS, VISITORS, PERSONELL aware of what is expected of them by having signs everywhere reminding them to how to cover their coughs, about

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