Area businesses, hospitals vamp up H1N1 precautions
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The Centers for Disease Control says individuals can protect themselves from H1N1 or seasonal flu by washing their hands often with soap and water or an alcohol-based hand rub; avoiding touching eyes, mouth or nose; and avoiding close contact with sick people. Taking steps to protect yourself is one part of the equation to prevent the spread of illness, and throughout the area businesses, hospitals and public entities are attempting to protect employees and the general public by implementing a few extra precautions as cases of flulike symptoms continue to pop up.
Davis Memorial Hospital in Elkins has implemented some changes to its normal procedures.
DMH Director of In-Patient Services Diana Patella said that changes to the visitation policy went into effect on Thursday morning.
"Visitation is confined to healthy adults 18 years and older," Patella said. "No one under the age of 18 will be allowed to visit patients and only two visitors per patient at a time."
Brothers and sisters of newborn babies will have to wait to see their sibling until they arrive at home. Visitors for newborns are limited to parents and grandparents, Patella said.
The Emergency Department will require anyone with flulike symptoms to wear a mask while waiting to see a doctor.
"We are attempting to keep the hospital safe for patients and staff," Patella said.
Effective immediately, Stonewall Jackson Memorial Hospital is temporarily changing its visitation policy to protect patients and health care workers during the 2009-2010 flu season, especially with the presence of H1N1.
The hospital will not allow people with flulike symptoms or anyone younger than 18 to visit patients. The number of in-patient visitors has been limited to two people at a time, and anyone who enters the Emergency Department with flulike symptoms will be asked to wear a mask. Emergency Department patients are discouraged from having visitors. If visitation is necessary, it will be limited to one person at a time.
All visitors must adhere to good hand-washing procedures when entering and leaving patient rooms.
In the Obstetrics Department, visitors will be limited to the father or significant other or coach and grandparents of the newborn. The staff of SJMH's Birthing Unit understand that having a new baby is an enjoyable and rewarding time that everyone wants to share in, but the safety and health of both mother and infant is a top priority.
Broaddus Hospital in Philippi has implemented a few changes and recommendations.
According to Susie Cvechko, director of in-patient services, they are encouraging people to wash their hands often.
"We have had hand sanitizers throughout the hospital for over a year," Cvechko said. "We also have several signs posted around the facility with precautions listed on them for the flu."
Visitation hours and requirements have not changed, but Cvechko encourages those who are ill to stay home instead of coming to see friends and family in Broaddus Hospital.
"We work hand and hand with the Barbour County Health Department," she said. "This way we can better keep the public informed."
Broaddus has not experienced staffing problems and all the employees are encouraged to take the seasonal flu shot and the H1N1 shot. If an employee calls off sick, they cannot return to work until they have seen a doctor, according to Cvechko. Also, masks are available for everyone when they come to the hospital.
As the health care community and people around the world continue to learn about the H1N1 virus, Tri-County Health Clinic Inc. is working to inform local residents about what it is doing to respond to the increasing number of cases of the H1N1 flu in the area.
Tri-County's local physician offices in Rock Cave and CareXpress in downtown Buckhannon and Gassaway, as well as the Rock Cave pharmacy and outlying physician office locations in Gassaway, West Milford, Helvetia and Durbin are prepared to treat patients who have flulike symptoms.
Patients and visitors at any of Tri-County's locations will notice some temporary changes during the H1N1 outbreak. Sanitizing stations have been placed at the front doors and all patients having a fever or any flulike symptom are asked to wear a face mask and to sanitize their hands upon entry to the facilities. In addition, medical personnel are also being asked to wear face masks as a precaution.
Some locations are currently at a Level 4 within the organization's Flu Plan. These sites have established separate registration, waiting rooms and treatment rooms specifically for patients with flulike symptoms to help avoid spreading the illness to other patients and staff.
Cross training of staff and emergency staffing schedules have been developed in preparation for significant absenteeism.
All personnel with flulike symptoms are instructed not to report to work, or if at work, are instructed to cease patient care activities. Separate medical staff are trained and assigned to handle the influx of telephone inquiries about the illness.
A coordinated flu plan is imperative in order to manage the surge and assure optimal patient care.
"An ongoing relationship with a primary care doctor is especially important at times such as this," said Tim Grimes, Tri-County's pandemic influenza outbreak coordinator. "Anyone who doesn't already have a physician is urged to get one."
Keeping the germs at bay is on the minds of many people during cold and flu season. This year especially with the advent of the H1N1 virus, disinfectant sprays, wipes and hand sanitizers are items some local drug stores are having a hard time keeping on the shelves.
The CVS/Pharmacy in Elkins doesn't have any Lysol disinfectant spray, Clorox wipes or hand sanitizer on their shelves. According to store manager Matt Vanscoy, their company warehouse is even having problems keeping it in stock. Vanscoy said that a small shipment may come to the store Monday and a larger amount of products should be back on CVS shelves in the first few weeks of November.
"That stuff has been a big hit," he said.
An employee of the CVS pharmacy said not many prescriptions of Tamiflu have been filled. The same is true at Walgreens pharmacy, an employee said. However, the Elkins store has been able to keep sanitizers and similar high-demand items in stock, according to store manager Ginny Ong.
Ong said many people are asking about vaccines for both seasonal and H1N1 flu. Walgreens is out of the seasonal vaccine and there isn't a date for when places such as Walgreens and CVS will get the H1N1 serum.
"Everybody is waiting for them," Ong said.
With so many people in and out of retail stores and local restaurants there are some options to provide a little extra protection against flu viruses.
Wal-Mart in Elkins provides antibacterial wipes near the cart storage area so customers may clean the surface if they choose, manager David Kesling explained. The retailer also encourages good hygiene practices for its employees, Kesling said.
Kmart also offers cleaning wipes at the front of its store for customers who want to wipe carts. Manager Melvin Clark said the practice has been in place for approximately two years. Store employees are also given hand sanitizer and wipes for their check-out stations, he said.
At Applebee's in Elkins, manager Doug Tuning said the restaurant set strict cleaning policies before worries about H1N1. Since then, he said hand sanitizer has been placed at each server terminal. Employees who are ill have been told to stay home and if they exhibit signs of sickness at work they are sent home as a precaution, Tuning added.
Patty Kittle, an employee at the Belington Wellness Center, said the workout facility has always taken sanitary precautions. She said preventive measures including wiping down fitness machines after clients and cleaning the entire facility nightly.
"We haven't really been doing things much different," Kittle said. "We use disinfectant on the machines when we wipe them down. People sweat on the machines and we don't want somebody to get someone else's sweat on them, so we wipe them down. We also keep hand sanitizer available. We clean the place very well each night. We use chlorine in the pool daily and we also clean the hot tub daily."
The Landmark Baptist Church in Elkins has more than 350 members in its congregation. The Rev. Ken Shiflet said the church has begun taking precautions to prevent the spread of viruses after he noticed several clergy members absent and others coughing during the sermon. To help educate the church, he said a brochure from Davis Health System has been included in the church bulletin.
"We realize this is a problem and it's serious," Shiflet said. "We've told everyone we are going to stop shaking hands until the flu threat is over, or at least diminished. We have three doors here and we shake everyone's hand as they go out. We told them we are not going to do that anymore and they understood. If I shake the hand of someone who's got it and I shake the hands of 75 more people behind them, then it could spread. I know it seems kind of odd not shaking hands at church, but it's something that we got to get used to. It feels awkward because church is a friendly place, but everybody understands this is not your usual flu season."
Other businesses that see an influx of people are taking precautions as well.
According to Connie Tenney, senior vice president at Progressive Bank in Buckhannon, the bank has in place hand sanitizers at each teller window and is also offering training classes on the swine flu.
"We also encourage our employees to get the flu shot," Tenney said. "We also provided information to our employees about H1N1."
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MrsDawnR
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11-02-09 11:45 AM
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Being that the H1N1 vaccine has not been tested on pregnant women, and we have no way of knowing the effect on the fetus, I wonder why they recommend it still. And approximately 30 children had the vaccine tested on them before it was released, and they want me to have my child vaccinated? No way.
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