RSV - Respiratory Syncytial Virus

The cold and flu season is upon us even if it is technically still fall. Respiratory viruses commonly cause illnesses such as flu, COVID-19, and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), especially in the fall and winter.

Respiratory syncytial (sin-SISH-uhl) virus, or RSV, is a common respiratory virus that usually causes mild, cold-like symptoms. Most people recover in a week or two, but RSV can be serious. Infants and older adults are more likely to develop severe RSV and need hospitalization. If you are age 60 or older, a vaccine is available to protect you from severe RSV. Talk to your healthcare provider to see if it’s right for you.

SOURCE: CDC.gov

It’s winter which means…

There are a lot of people coughing and sneezing indoors and out. To help you and your loved ones be safe, we want to limit the spreading of germs and prevent infection. What can you do?

• Avoid close contact with people who are sick.

• When you are sick, keep your distance from others to protect them from getting sick too.

• Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when coughing or sneezing. It may prevent those around you from getting sick.

• Washing your hands often will help protect you from germs.

• Avoid touching your eyes, nose, or mouth.

• Regardless of age, practice other good health habits. Get plenty of sleep, be physically active, manage your stress, drink plenty of fluids, and eat nutritious food.

PART 2 of 2 - EXTREME HEAT - WHAT TO DO DURING

HOW TO BE SAFE DURING EXTREME HEAT

• Never leave a child, adult, or animal alone inside a vehicle on a warm day.
• Find places with air conditioning. Libraries, shopping malls, and community centers can provide a cool place to take a break from the heat.
• If you’re outside, find shade. Wear a hat wide enough to protect your face.
• Wear loose, lightweight, light-colored clothing.
• Drink plenty of fluids to stay hydrated. If you or someone you care for is on a special diet, ask a doctor how best to accommodate it.
• Do not use electric fans when the temperature outside is more than 95 degrees, as this could increase the risk of heat-related illness. Fans create air flow and a false sense of comfort, but do not reduce body temperature.
• Avoid high-energy activities.
• Check yourself, family members, and neighbors for signs of heat-related illness.

RECOGNIZE AND RESPOND

Know the signs of heat-related illness and the ways to respond to it:

• HEAT CRAMPS
  • Signs: Muscle pains or spasms in the stomach, arms, or legs
  • Actions: Go to a cooler location. Remove excess clothing. Take sips of cool sports drinks with salt and sugar. Get medical help if cramps last more than an hour.
• HEAT EXHAUSTION
  • Signs: Heavy sweating, paleness, muscle cramps, tiredness, weakness, dizziness, headache, nausea or vomiting, or fainting
  • Actions: Go to an air-conditioned place and lie down. Loosen or remove clothing. Take a cool bath. Take sips of cool sports drinks with salt and sugar. Get medical help if symptoms get worse or last more than an hour.
• HEAT STROKE
  • Signs: Extremely high body temperature (above 103 degrees) taken orally; red, hot, and dry skin with no sweat; rapid, strong pulse; dizziness; confusion; or unconsciousness

  • Actions: Call 911 or get the person to a hospital immediately. Cool down with whatever methods are available until medical help arrives.

EXTREME HEAT (part 1 of 2)

Extreme Heat often results in the highest number of annual deaths among all weather-related hazards. In most of the United States, extreme heat is defined as a long period (2 to 3 days) of high heat and humidity with temperatures above 90 degrees. In extreme heat, evaporation is slowed and the body must work extra hard to maintain a normal temperature. This can lead to death by overworking the human body. Remember that:

• Extreme heat can occur quickly and without warning.

• Older adults, children, and sick or overweight individuals are at greater risk from extreme heat.

• Humidity increases the feeling of heat as measured by a heat index.

 IF YOU ARE UNDER AN EXTREME HEAT WARNING:

• Find air conditioning.

• Avoid strenuous activities.

• Watch for heat illness.

• Wear light clothing.

• Check on family members and neighbors.

• Drink plenty of fluids.

• Watch for heat cramps, heat exhaustion, and heat stroke.

• Never leave people or pets in a closed car.

HOW TO STAY SAFE WHEN EXTREME HEAT THREATENS

WHAT TO DO NOW: Prepare

• Find places in your community where you can go to get cool.
• Keep your home cool by doing the following:
  • Cover windows with drapes or shades.
  • Weather-strip doors and windows.
  • Use window reflectors, such as aluminum foil-covered cardboard, to reflect heat back outside.
  • Add insulation to keep the heat out.
  • Use attic fans to clear hot air.
  • Install window air conditioners and insulate around them.
• Learn to recognize the signs of heat-related illness.

(tomorrow) WHAT TO DO DURING EXTREME HEAT 

Dehydration

With summer around the corner, we know temperatures will climb which means our bodies will be needing more water. Dehydration happens when your body doesn't have as much water as it needs. Without enough water, your body cannot function properly. You can have mild, moderate, or severe dehydration depending on how much fluid is missing from your body.

It’s normal to lose water from your body every day by sweating, breathing, peeing, and pooping, and through tears and saliva (spit). Usually you replace the lost liquid by drinking fluids and eating foods that contain water. If you lose too much water or don’t drink and eat enough, you can get dehydrated.

YOU CAN LOSE MORE WATER THAN USUAL WITH:

• A fever
• Diarrhea
• Vomiting
• Excessive sweating
• Peeing a lot (Diabetes and some medications like water pills -- also called diuretics -- can make you pee more often.)

YOU MAY NOT REPLACE THE WATER YOU LOSE BECAUSE:

• You’re busy and forget to drink enough.
• You don’t realize you’re thirsty.
• You don’t feel like drinking because you have a sore throat or mouth sores, or you’re sick to your stomach.

Symptoms

Signs of mild or moderate dehydration include:

• Thirst
• Dry or sticky mouth
• Not peeing very much
• Dark yellow pee
• Dry, cool skin
• Headache
• Muscle cramps

Signs of severe dehydration include:

• Not peeing or having very dark yellow pee
• Very dry skin
• Feeling dizzy
• Rapid heartbeat
• Rapid breathing
• Sunken eyes
• Sleepiness, lack of energy, confusion or irritability
• Fainting

Symptoms for babies and young children can be different than for adults:

• Dry mouth and tongue
• No tears when crying
• Dry diapers for 3 hours
• Sunken eyes, cheeks, soft spot on the top of the skull
• Sleepiness, lack of energy, or irritability

Severe dehydration is a medical emergency and needs to be treated immediately.

Thunder and Lightning: What to do and how to prepare...

Thunderstorms & Lightning

All thunderstorms are dangerous. Every thunderstorm produces lightning. While lightning fatalities have decreased over the past 30 years, lightning continues to be one of the top three storm-related killers in the United States. On average in the U.S., lightning kills 51 people and injures hundreds more. Although most lightning victims survive, people struck by lightning often report a variety of long-term, debilitating symptoms.

Other associated dangers of thunderstorms include tornadoes, strong winds, hail and flash flooding. Flash flooding is responsible for more fatalities – more than 140 annually – than any other thunderstorm-associated hazard. Dry thunderstorms that do not produce rain that reaches the ground are most prevalent in the western United States. Falling raindrops evaporate, but lightning can still reach the ground and can start wildfires.

Before Thunderstorm and Lightning

To prepare for a thunderstorm, you should do the following:

• To begin preparing, you should build an emergency kit and make a family communications plan.
• Remove dead or rotting trees and branches that could fall and cause injury or damage during a severe thunderstorm.
• Postpone outdoor activities.
• Secure outdoor objects that could blow away or cause damage.
• Get inside a home, building, or hard top automobile (not a convertible). Although you may be injured if lightning strikes your car, you are much safer inside a vehicle than outside.
• Remember, rubber-soled shoes and rubber tires provide NO protection from lightning. However, the steel frame of a hard-topped vehicle provides increased protection if you are not touching metal.
• Shutter windows and secure outside doors. If shutters are not available, close window blinds, shades or curtains.
• Unplug any electronic equipment well before the storm arrives.

Lightning Risk Reduction When Outdoors

• If you are in a forest then, seek shelter in a low area under a thick growth of small trees.
• In an open area, go to a low place such as a ravine or valley. Be alert for flash floods.
• On open water, get to land and find shelter immediately.

What do you do in the case of an emergency...

Emergency Alerts

Public safety officials use timely and reliable systems to alert you and your family in the event of natural or man-made disasters. This blog describes different warning alerts you can receive and the types of devices that receive the alerts.

Wireless Emergency Alerts

During an emergency, alert and warning officials need to provide the public with life-saving information quickly. Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEAs), made available through the Integrated Public Alert and Warning System (IPAWS) infrastructure, are just one of the ways public safety officials can quickly and effectively alert and warn the public about serious emergencies.

What you need to know about WEAs:

• WEAs can be sent by state and local public safety officials, the National Weather Service, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, and the President of the United States
• WEAs can be issued for three alert categories – imminent threat, AMBER, and presidential
• WEAs look like text messages, but are designed to get your attention and alert you with a unique sound and vibration, both repeated twice
• WEAs are no more than 90 characters, and will include the type and time of the alert, any action you should take, as well as the agency issuing the alert
• WEAs are not affected by network congestion and will not disrupt texts, calls, or data sessions that are in progress
• Mobile users are not charged for receiving WEAs and there is no need to subscribe
• To ensure your device is WEA-capable, check with your service provider

Emergency Alert System

• The Integrated Public Alert and Warning System (IPAWS), is a modernization and integration of the nation's existing and future alert and warning systems, technologies, and infrastructure.
• The Emergency Alert System (EAS) is a national public warning system that requires broadcasters, satellite digital audio service and direct broadcast satellite providers, cable television systems, and wireless cable systems to provide the President with a communications capability to address the American people within 10 minutes during a national emergency.
• EAS may also be used by state and local authorities, in cooperation with the broadcast community, to deliver important emergency information, such as weather information, imminent threats, AMBER alerts, and local incident information targeted to specific areas.
• The President has sole responsibility for determining when the national-level EAS will be activated. FEMA is responsible for national-level EAS tests and exercises.
• EAS is also used when all other means of alerting the public are unavailable, providing an added layer of resiliency to the suite of available emergency communication tools.

NOAA Weather Radio All Hazards (NWR) is a nationwide network of radio stations broadcasting continuous weather information from the nearest National Weather Service office.

• NWR broadcasts official warnings, watches, forecasts and other hazard information 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
• It also broadcasts alerts of non-weather emergencies such as national security, natural, environmental, and public safety through the Emergency Alert System.

Wireless Emergency Alerts

During an emergency, alert and warning officials need to provide the public with life-saving information quickly. Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEAs), made available through the Integrated Public Alert and Warning System (IPAWS) infrastructure, are just one of the ways public safety officials can quickly and effectively alert and warn the public about serious emergencies.

What you should know about the Flu...

With the flu season upon us, here are some key points to remember:

• Most people get better from the flu without problems, but the flu can be deadly. It can lead to serious health problems such as pneumonia, or it can make an existing disease worse. Every year, thousands of people end up in the hospital with other health problems from the flu.
• A flu vaccine may not always keep you from getting the seasonal flu, but it can make the symptoms milder and lower the risk of other health problems from the flu.
• A few people may not be able to get a flu vaccine. If you have a severe allergy to any part of the vaccine, have had a serious reaction to the vaccine in the past, had Guillain-Barré syndrome, or are ill, be sure to tell the person who gives the vaccine.
• The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that everyone age 6 months and older should get a flu vaccine. But it's most important to get one if you're at high risk for other health problems from the flu. Those at high risk include young children, pregnant women, older adults, and people who have chronic diseases or weak immune systems.
• If you take care of someone who is at high risk, it's a good idea to get a flu vaccine. This can lower the chance that you could spread the flu to the person you care for.
• Flu viruses change quickly, so you need to get a flu vaccine every year.
• You can't get the flu from a flu vaccine.

This information does not replace the advice of a doctor. CNS Homecare disclaims any warranty or liability for your use of this information.

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