SwineFlu cases

[Sub_Umbra]

I don't know who to put my trust in. The last real hub-bub about the Swine flu that I recall was in the 70s and there were more fatalities among those who listened to the medical advice and got the Swine flu shot than those who didn't and just took their chances with the flu. The fact that medical science has come so far did little to comfort the survivors of those who followed the official advice and died.

When it comes to medicine I'll have to just have a look at what's out there and make my own decisions. I'm 58 and I made it through the last Swine flu event..I'm cautiously optimistic about this one...

 

[fieldops]

This afternoon, I tried to figure it out.
This evening in class, I tried to figure it out.
Tonight while coming downstairs to the computer, I tried to figure it out.

I give up.

What is the roll of black plastic for?

It's a means of stealth at home. It's to minimize the amount of light that gets out from people still at home. If people don't see you in there, the less attention they will pay. This applies to people who want what YOU have and public officials that want to REMOVE you from your home.

Sub_Umbra noted its value in Katrina.

I have researched similar stealth in "acoustics". Keeping your generator from being heard can be important. I used four acoustic sound ceiling panels to send the sound "upward". Once you get a few feet away, it's already hard to hear the generator. In some disasters, thieves simply follow the generator sound to know where their next victims are located.

 

[saabgoblin]

I don't know who to put my trust in. The last real hub-bub about the Swine flu that I recall was in the 70s and there were more fatalities among those who listened to the medical advice and got the Swine flu shot than those who didn't and just took their chances with the flu. The fact that medical science has come so far did little to comfort the survivors of those who followed the official advice and died.

When it comes to medicine I'll have to just have a look at what's out there and make my own decisions. I'm 58 and I made it through the last Swine flu event..I'm cautiously optimistic about this one...

Medical science has come a long way but were medical science falls short is in the ramifications of medical science and science in general. Now go wash your hands!

 

[Sub_Umbra]

...I have researched similar stealth in "acoustics". Keeping your generator from being heard can be important. I used four acoustic sound ceiling panels to send the sound "upward". Once you get a few feet away, it's already hard to hear the generator...

That is really cool, fieldops. After the K event I actually talked to a couple of engineers about reducing the noise signature of generators and they were totally baffled (no pun intended). That's great.

 

[StarHalo]

And they said that even if it is widespread, they do not anticipate seeing it to anywhere near the severity or mortality that has been seen in the communities in Mexico.

This is key; some of the fatalities that are being reported from Mexico are those who simply didn't bother to take action once they became ill. Others weren't even given the opportunity - one man waited until he was quite sick and went to a local hospital, but was turned down because he wasn't properly registered for national health care. Jon Stewart said it best on The Daily Show; Mexicans are still much more likely to die from Bullet Flu, which is airborne..

Even a casual glance at the "what you can do" newsbytes will tell you that there's not much to worry about. It boils down to:

- To prevent getting the flu, do what you normally do to prevent illness.

- The symptoms of the flu are the same as a normal flu.

- Treat the flu the same way you would normally treat a flu.

And that's it. No fatalities in the US or Canada from Swine Flu thanks to "business as usual". It's not a pandemic if you can treat it with NyQuil.

 

[Lit Up]

Get your Tamiflu now.

Nah, between oil pulling, garlic, neem and elderberry, it will kick it.

 

[chmsam]

I don't know who to put my trust in. The last real hub-bub about the Swine flu that I recall was in the 70s and there were more fatalities among those who listened to the medical advice and got the Swine flu shot than those who didn't and just took their chances with the flu.

Moot point this time around since there is no vaccine for this swine flu.

By the way, people do understand that the reason common cold and flu outbreaks work so well is that they are slightly different strains each time, right? Each strain is unique.

The CDC said in a news briefing yesterday that probably one of the best ways to prepare for dealing with the swine flu is to pre-plan how to deal with school closings (if it ever comes to that) so people know that their children will be looked after while they are at work. That was suggested more than wearing masks, loading up on meds, etc.

Now if we could only get people to quit sneezing in each others faces and to start washing their hands once in awhile. Simple stuff but so many people still just don't get it. It's like we are a nation of 3 year old children.

 

[LEDAdd1ct]

Now if we could only get people to quit sneezing in each others faces and to start washing their hands once in awhile. Simple stuff but so many people still just don't get it. It's like we are a nation of 3 year old children.

I absolutely 100% stand by this! Those who know me consider me a germaphobe, but the truth is, between keyboards, doorknobs, railings, handles, shopping carts...the list goes on-

why wouldn't you wash your hands before touching your face/eating?! I really cannot understand why many people do not do this. The other thing that irks me is when I see people "washing their hands" by rinsing them for two seconds. I tell children to sing "Happy Birthday" to themselves twice so that they know they have washed their hands long enough. Covering one's mouth and washing one's hands are so simple, yet so blatantly ignored (at least in the U.S.) that I truly wonder how much of a reduction in communicable diseases we would see if *everyone* washed their hands before touching their face and/or eating.

 

[Empath]

An interesting site for monitoring the situation.

 

[Sub_Umbra]

I don't know who to put my trust in. The last real hub-bub about the Swine flu that I recall was in the 70s and there were more fatalities among those who listened to the medical advice and got the Swine flu shot than those who didn't and just took their chances with the flu. The fact that medical science has come so far did little to comfort the survivors of those who followed the official advice and died.

When it comes to medicine I'll have to just have a look at what's out there and make my own decisions. I'm 58 and I made it through the last Swine flu event..I'm cautiously optimistic about this one...

Moot point this time around since there is no vaccine for this swine flu.

I couldn't disagree more. I apologize for not being clearer about what I was trying to say. Let me try again.

While it's true that there is no Swine flu shot this time around, there is far more to the equation than that. Let's start by looking at the dynamics involved in bringing the bad Swine flu shot to the public over thirty years ago. It illustrates nicely why individuals today must think very carefully about decisions made for the country's well being. No conspiracy theories, just an examination of the way important decisions have been made and will continue to be made for the forseeable future.

In addition to the labs that came up with the flu shot that killed people, there were also those in the industry that reviewed the work of those who who made the flu shot. After everyone involved in the development and production of the flu shot that killed more people than the flue signed off on it it was then time for the politicians to make their mistakes. Gerald Ford signed off on it and recommended that all Americans have the shot.

The key here is not the shot. The thing to take away from this is that all of the decisions were made by humans and are therefore subject to a high degree of folly. That's just the way humans are. Some of the bad decisions were made by scientists; some were made by bureaucrats who are key in nearly all endeavors (including medicine.) Then to cap it off a politician makes the last bad decision (next to the last, actually. No one was forced to take the shot.)

What makes it interesting is that there is so much about these decisions that may have had nothing to do with medicine. In a potential pandemic situation where the health of hundreds of millions or even billions of people hang in the balance, life and death decisions will be made by politicians, economists and even the military. These decision makers have a few things in common, aside from the fact that they are not a part of the medical culture. They are bureaucrats and as such have at least some of the same concerns as all bureaucrats do: will this decision grow or shrink their bureaucracies and their budgets, as well as more generalized questions that range from subjects like their careers to their daughters college education. Some have accused Ford of basing his decision on his plans for the upcoming election. These are all human issues not medical issues. Because so much of ALL big medical policy issues are resolved by mere humans, often with their own self interest at heart, I am suspect of all of them and will always try to read between the lines and sus out the truth before I decide on a course of action for myself and my loved ones.

I'm sorry I wasn't clearer, chmsam.

NOTE: I'm not trying to introduce partisan politics into this discussion. Far from it. I'm asserting that all pols, regardless of stripe, have and will behave the same way. I have made no comment on the administration's handling of this subject. I'm only pointing out that aside from other non-medical disciplines, politics will also always be involved in any issues with the potential to affect this many people. That's what politics is for. I'm not taking sides one way or the other on any political issue concerning this subject.

 

[chmsam]

In the US it's hard to get people to stop sneezing into their hands (and to use tissues or a sleeve instead), to use a tissue only once and not to hang on to it, to not touch their eyes, mouth, or nose without washing their hands (before and after), and (hardest of all) to wash their hands when common (or maybe it's uncommon) sense says to do so. These are cultural bad habits.

Moms still spit into a (dirty) tissue and wipe the faces of their children. :green:

Like I've been saying, a little Lysol spray and Purell goes a long way.

 

[chmsam]

As for the vaccines, leaving politics, theories, and impressions aside, it takes up to a year to come up with an effective vaccine. Previously the rush to get some medicines to the market might have allowed some of them to be released before as much testing as could have shown problems was completed. There could be 101 reasons from pure greed to pure altruism for that and I don't want to go into that kind of speculation.

I will agree that there's too much finger pointing and not enough fixing of actual problems though. Often it has nothing to do with politics or anything other than it's a popular thing to do and it's a colossal waste of time and effort here and elsewhere. That's a topic for the Underground.

 

[StarHalo]

Vincent: Want some bacon?
Jules: No man, I don't eat pork.
Vincent: Are you Jewish?
Jules: Nah, I ain't Jewish, I just don't dig on swine, that's all.
Vincent: Why not?
Jules: Pigs are filthy animals. I don't eat filthy animals.
Vincent: Yeah, but bacon tastes gooood. Pork chops taste gooood.

 

[jtr1962]

why wouldn't you wash your hands before touching your face/eating?! I really cannot understand why many people do not do this. The other thing that irks me is when I see people "washing their hands" by rinsing them for two seconds. I tell children to sing "Happy Birthday" to themselves twice so that they know they have washed their hands long enough. Covering one's mouth and washing one's hands are so simple, yet so blatantly ignored (at least in the U.S.) that I truly wonder how much of a reduction in communicable diseases we would see if *everyone* washed their hands before touching their face and/or eating.

What I really don't get is people not washing their hands after they use the toilet. Bad enough not to do this when you make #1, but unbelieveable that I see lots of people leaving the men's room without washing after doing the other thing. :green: And then they sit down to finish their Big Mac. Sad to say, but I've noticed we've become ever more complacent about good personal hygiene. That's really the key to keep from getting swine flu or any other disease. I even wash off soda and milk bottles before putting them in the fridge. No way of knowing who touched it before me.

Another pet peeve of mine is when sick people try to be a hero and go to work/school. That's about as inconsiderate as it gets. If I had employees I'd fire them on the spot for showing up to work sick. They're not doing anyone any favors.

IMO we've become too reliant on technology (vaccines, antibiotics) to keep us safe, and have forgotten other common sense measures. I remember stories about when my grandparents immigrated here how they turned away anyone with even the slightest hint of a cold or other disease. Nowadays it seems we don't bother screening anybody (that's one reason TB is on the rise after nearly being eradicated). And don't even get me started on the ease with which disease can spread via air travel. It should be a lot harder to travel abroad than it is, and those returning from countries known to harbor many communicable diseases should have to remain in quarantine for a week or two as a matter of course. I don't care how inconvenient this makes things. Doing so probably would have alerted us to the initial cases of swine flu before they had a potential to spread to the general population. If we ever have another pandemic it's going to be largely caused by our own complacency and stupidity.

 

[fieldops]

What I really don't get is people not washing their hands after they use the toilet. Bad enough not to do this when you make #1, but unbelieveable that I see lots of people leaving the men's room without washing after doing the other thing. :green: And then they sit down to finish their Big Mac.

This is absolutely true. Horrible

 

[LEDAdd1ct]

I, LEDAdd1ct, a man addicted to LED lights of varying tints and outputs, hereby propose that in order to prevent the further transmission of swine flu and other communicable diseases that

1) All persons worldwide shall be required to wash their hands after using the restrooms

and, that

2) All persons worldwide shall be required to cover their mouth and nose when sneezing with their shoulder or inner arm

and, that

3) All persons worldwide shall be required to wash their hands before eating and/or drinking

and, that those persons found guilty of breaking these rules as set forth here will be punished by no less than

a) A stern talking to

and will further be required to

b) Sing "Happy Birthday" aloud in a loud, clear voice while washing their hands, in public or private, to provide proof that said person is adequately killing and/or removing the germs from those hands.

This law, here written at 10:55 P.M. E.D.T., shall be taken with a very large grain of salt, though not before washing one's hands under hot, soapy water.

 

[StefanFS]

What I really don't get is people not washing their hands after they use the toilet. Bad enough not to do this when you make #1, but unbelieveable that I see lots of people leaving the men's room without washing after doing the other thing. :green: And then they sit down to finish their Big Mac.

I've been to several major European airports during the last week. In all restrooms at those airports I've been running between stalls trying to find one where the previous occupant actually cared enough to flush, at the same time trying not to step in something... I've never seen that before in my travels around the world. I'm glad I had antiviral tissues/wipes.

 

[rala]

Recently, at my facility, we had a young man expire. Due to the nature of the case, it was referred to the coroner according to normal hospital policy. Apparently, the coroner leaked info that the deceased had flu like symptoms to the media and they swarmed the facility. I had to call in more staff to control traffic and keep the media at a distance. The media went so far as blocking traffic in and out of the facility, and on neighboring streets trying to dig up anything. They would stop people trying to get in and ask, "Are you aware that someone here died of the Swine Flu?" Or, "Did you know that people here have been exposed to the Swine Flu?" They were stating it as if it were fact. All they did was cause panic, when nothing had been confirmed yet. Instead of helping by informing the public, they caused panic by misinforming them. It made all of our jobs within the hospital harder. Here we are trying to help people, and the media, in the persuit of ratings, lies to them. Oh, by the way, shortly thereafter, it was confirmed that the man's death was unrelated and the media went digging elsewhere.

 

[DM51]

The panic and hysteria is becoming absurd. Earlier today I saw a woman shouting at a TV reporter that she was "devastated" that her daughter had been put at risk of Swine Flu by attending the same school as another pupil who had not yet arrived home from a holiday in Mexico. Work that one out.

 

[ResQTech]

New Swine Flu Masks!