Swine Flu: Tips to Help Prevent a Pandemic

There may be no swine flu cases in your town or facility, but it’s better to be safe than sorry. After all, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) acknowledges that human-to-human transmission of swine flu can occur through coughing, sneezing, touching contaminated material and then touching the mouth or nose.

You can protect yourself and help stop the spread of a swine flu epidemic by practicing the following hand-hygiene guidelines: 

Remember that you touch a lot of things all day, and you can spread disease this way if your hands are not clean.  

Head to the sink before preparing food, eating, smoking, applying make-up and handling contact lenses. Wash also after preparing food, going to the bathroom, and changing diapers. Do so more often if you’re coughing and sneezing and when you’re around someone who does. Use alcohol-based gels if soap and water are not immediately on hand. But do wash with soap and water as soon as possible.  

• Hold your hands under warm running water
• Lather up with soap
• Start rubbing hands together, getting the back of your hands, fingernails, around rings and up around the wrists as well. Do this for 10-15 seconds.
• Rinse hands under running water, with fingers pointing downward.
• Dry hands but leave the faucet on
• Use a clean, disposable towel and pat hands dry
• Turn off the faucet using the towel
   

If you’re about to sneeze and there’s no tissue or handkerchief around, do so into your sleeve or turn your head into your upper arm. Throw out tissues you use and don’t leave handkerchiefs you sneezed on lying around, especially if you share a workstation.
 

For more information or to order Coastal Training Technologies new H1N1 Flu (Swine Flu): What You Need To Know (DVD), please click here . 

Source: http://www.coastal.com/site/this-weeks-training-tips/newsflash/swine-flu-tips-to-help-prevent-a-pandemic.html