RD News from HM Composite

The Swine Flu has gotten our attention this week... please read on and check the HMC staff website (see side bar for link) for articles and new information.

Swine Flu,

Eating Pork, Pandemics, and More

Swine flu news is spreading fast, with media reports buzzing about probable, confirmed, or possible cases in California (San Diego, & Imperial counties, Fair Oaks/Sacramento area,) Texas, Kansas, and New York. There are over 1300 cases in Mexico and with a higher severity, has resulted in over 80 deaths in Mexico. Only one hospitalization and no deaths have been reported in the US. Other countries reporting swine flu cases include Spain, France and New Zealand.

Today Gov. Schwarzenegger proclaimed a swine flu state of emergency for California.

Swine flu symptoms: There isn't a special set of symptoms unique to swine flu. It's pretty much flu, and it takes a lab test to tell whether it's swine flu. Here is what CDC's web site says about swine flu symptoms: "The symptoms of swine flu in people are expected to be similar to the symptoms of regular human seasonal influenza and include fever over 100 degrees, lethargy and achiness, lack of appetite, sore throat, and coughing. Some people with swine flu also have reported runny nose, sore throat, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea." Mild illness symptoms do not need immediate medical treatment. Incubation of swine flu is 24 to 48 hrs.If you suspect flu go to a doctor who will determine what to do next in terms of testing and treatment. Laboratory testing has found the swine influenza A (H1N1) virus susceptible to the prescription antiviral drugs oseltamivir and zanamivir.

Protect the health and well-being of yourself and residents with these tips:

Frequent hand washing is the best prevention! Be sure to wash hands after every resident contact and before touching your face, eating or drinking. Another step might be keeping a hand sanitizer in your auto and make it a habit to use every time you leave a facility or public place. Avoid close contact with people who may be ill.

If you are not well, do not go to your facility. Especially if you are running a temp over 100 degrees, have aches, chills, vomiting, diarrhea, or sore throat. Food service workers (and dietitians) must be free of all gastro-intestinal symptoms for 48 hours before returning to the dietary department.

This would be a good time to repeat the annual inservice for dietary staff on CAL-Code which explains "person-in-charge" responsibilities and what to do if food service workers are ill.

Can We Safely Eat Pork?
According to the CDC, swine influenza viruses are not transmitted by food. The CDC says that humans cannot contract this strain of swine influenza from eating pork.
�         You can not get swine influenza from eating pork or pork products. Eating properly handled and cooked pork and pork products is safe
�         In pigs, swine influenza is a respiratory disease. Few reports exist supporting theories of influenza entering the bloodstream or causing systemic infection in pigs. Therefore, it is reasonable to expect that swine influenza cannot be found in pork/pork products.
�         If an animal with active swine influenza infection should arrive at a harvest facility, it would not pass the Food Safety Inspection Service (FSIS) ante-mortem inspection and would be condemned as an animal not fit for human consumption.
�         FSIS has stated that even if surface contamination of a product should occur, common-sense food handling and preparation practices would minimize the risk of illness as normal cooking temperatures should inactivate the virus.

The swine influenza subtype isolated from current cases is unique. It has not been found in U.S. pigs and had not been previously recognized in people. According to the CDC, "This virus is different, very different from that found in pigs." At this time there is no evidence that this swine influenza subtype is present in pigs in the United States or anywhere in the pig herd in the world.The CDC's investigation continues.

Facility and Industry Information you may Share
Click to access CAHF Swine Flu webpage At this time, facilities should review the guidelines in the all-facilities letter of November 2008 detailing recommendations for the prevention and control influenza in long-term care facilities. These guidelines remain current with the exception of the recommendations on treatment and vaccine. The information related to outbreak control, controlling visitors, screening staff, hand hygiene and respiratory etiquette should be reviewed and implemented as part of your facility's overall program for all outbreak management. Once on the CAHF swine flu page, you can reference the all-facilities letter and attached guidelines by clicking on, "General References for Influenza."

In addition, the American Health Care Association has swine flu information posted online.

Is swine flu now a Pandemic?

A Public Health Emergency has been declared by the HHS/Dept of Homeland Security. This allows freeing up of resources and is a preparedness step rather a reflection of a grave emergency. Here's the official definition from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS): "A pandemic is a global disease outbreak. An influenza pandemic occurs when a new influenza [type] A virus emerges for which there is little or no immunity in the human population, begins to cause serious illness, and then spreads easily person-to-person worldwide."

Now, if swine flu sounds to you like a pandemic, it's not quite that simple. The World Health Organization (WHO) today said there are "gaps in knowledge" about the new swine flu virus -- which actually contains a mix of swine, human, and bird (avian) flu viruses into a brand-new virus. The WHO has asked all countries to be on the lookout for the new virus, but it's not yet ready to bump up the pandemic alert level from phase 3 to phase 4.

Phase what? The WHO has a scale ranging from phase 1 (low risk of a flu pandemic) to phase 6 (a full-blown pandemic is underway). Right now, the WHO is considering whether to shift from phase 3 (which means there is no or very limited human-to-human transmission) to phase 4 (defined as evidence of human-to-human transmission).