FLU SHOT HOURS: M/T/W/F 9-1 2-6 Th 2-6
No appointment necessary.
OPEN TO THE PUBLIC – ENTER THROUGH THE PEDIATRIC DOOR
Studies suggest that vaccination with season influenza vaccine will NOT provide protection against the 2009 H1N1 influenza virus.
We will be providing both the regular flu (seasonal influenza) and the H1N1 flu vaccines. The regular flu vaccine is here and ready to go. It will be billed to your insurance if you are a VFP patient and is $25 for the public. You can drop in to get the vaccines.
H1N1 vaccine is expected to arrive in mid-October. Everyone will likely need two shots, three to four weeks apart. Cost is not yet determined.
H1N1 INFLUENZA is different from the regular flu. It is affecting a very different group of people than the regular flu!!
H1N1 virus would likely infect 30 to 50 percent of the U.S. population this fall and winter, with symptoms occurring in approximately 20 to 40 percent, or 60 to 120 million people with as many as 1.8 million hospital admissions, and cause between 30,000 and 90,000 deaths in the United States, primarily among children and young adults.
So far in California 1,528 people have had confirmed H1N1 and 128 people have died.
WHO IS AT HIGHEST RISK?
- Pregnant women are very high risk.
- Children newborn to 4 years old are being hospitalized the most.
- School aged children have the most number of confirmed H1N1.
- More school aged children have been hospitalized in four months this year (April to July) than the total number of people age 5-49 that are usually hospitalized in an entire year from regular flu.
- 70% of hospitalized people have an underlying medical condition that makes them high risk such as diabetes, asthma, pregnancy, heart conditions.
- Older adults are less likely to get H1N1.
WHO SHOULD DEFINITELY GET THE VACCINE?
- Pregnant women
- People aged 6 months to 24 years of age
- People who live with and care for children under 6 months of age – parents, siblings and daycare providers, grandparents.
- People aged 25 to 64 who have medical risks (asthma, diabetes, heart conditions)
- Health-care and emergency medical services personnel
- Anyone who wants to after those above are vaccinated
ARE YOU SICK WITH FLU LIKE SYMPTOMS??
This information is current as of 9/1/09, and is meant to be used as a general guideline. It should not replace your good judgment and is not intended to take the place of a personalized doctor’s appointment. Please call the office if you are a patient (or your doctor) to make an appointment or to speak with the provider if you are unsure if you should to be seen.
If you are experiencing any respiratory symptoms such as cough, sneezing or runny nose when you come in for your appointment, please immediately come to the front desk and ask for a mask and wear it through the duration of your visit. We do not want you to wait in line to get the mask.
** Right now, only pregnant women with fever and cough and hospitalized patients are likely to be treated with flu medications. This recommendation may change. **
H1N1 Symptoms (Similar to the symptoms of seasonal flu)
Age less than 60 years with fever (>37.8 C or 100 F) and new onset of cough
+/- sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, body aches, headache, chills, fatigue, diarrhea and vomiting
High Risk Groups
Children under 5 years old (Children <18 years old on long term aspirin therapy)
Pregnant women
Patients with chronic disease (asthma, diabetes, heart disease, immunosuppressed, HIV)
Obese patients (BMI >35)
Home Care
- For low risk patients with fever <101, body aches, mild cold/flu symptoms
Home Care Instructions:
- Stay home for at least 24 hours after your fever is gone without the use of fever-reducing medicine or 7 days after start of illness, whichever is longer.
- Avoid travel, work, school.
- Keep away from others as much as possible. Prevent others from getting sick.
- Drink clear fluids such as water, broth, sports drinks – Pedialyte for infants, to keep from being dehydrated.
- Get plenty of rest.
- Cover coughs and sneezes. If you do not have a tissue to cough or sneeze into, cough into your elbow area, not into your hands.
- Throw away tissues and other disposable items used by the sick person in the trash. Wash hands after touching used tissues and similar waste.
- Wash your hands frequently and especially after coughing or sneezing. Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth. Have everyone in the household wash hands often with soap and water. Hand sanitizers may be used.
- Dishes can be done in dishwasher or with hot soapy water.
- Take medications for symptom relief as needed for fever and pain such as Tylenol and Motrin and cough medicine. Do not take them if your symptoms improve. Do not given aspirin or medications that contain aspirin (e.g. Pepto-Bismol) to children under 18 years old.
- Do not give over-the-counter medications except Tylenol or Motrin to children under 4 years old. Do not give Motrin to children under 6 months old.
- Be watchful for emergency warning signs that might indicate your need to seek medical attention
- Household providers of people with H1N1 are not expected to wear a mask, unless they are in high risk group.
Emergency Warning Signs
In children, emergency warning signs that need urgent medical attention include:
- Fast breathing or trouble breathing
- Bluish or gray skin color
- Not drinking enough fluids – signs of dehydration
- Not urinating as much as usual
- Severe or persistent vomiting
- Not waking up or not interacting as usual
- Being so irritable that the child does not want to be held
- Flu-like symptoms improve but then return with fever and worse cough
- Fever returns after being absent for a day, or a significant change in fever pattern occurs. For example, it was 101 degrees Fahrenheit for several days and now it’s 103 degrees.
- Seizures
In adults, emergency warning signs that need urgent medical attention include:
- Difficulty breathing or shortness of breath
- Pain or pressure in the chest or abdomen
- Sudden dizziness
- Confusion
- Severe or persistent vomiting
- Flu-like symptoms improve but then return with fever and worse cough
- Seizures
- Signs of dehydration
Is it ok to breastfeed my baby if I am sick? Is it OK to take medicine to treat or prevent H1N1 flu while breastfeeding?
- A mother’s milk is made to fight diseases in her baby. This is really important in young babies when their immune system is still growing.
- Do not stop breastfeeding if you are ill. Breastfeed early and often. Limit formula feeds if you can. This will help protect your baby from infection.
- Be careful not to cough or sneeze in the baby’s face, wash your hands often with soap and water.
- Your doctor might ask you to wear a mask to keep from spreading this new virus to your baby.
- If you are too sick to breastfeed, pump and have someone give the expressed milk to your baby.
- Mothers who are breastfeeding can continue to nurse their babies while being treated for the flu.
More information:
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