Mary Pappas, BSN, RN, is the nurse at St. Francis Preparatory School in Queens who first notified officials of the swine flu outbreak. She’s been interviewed by the New York Times and by National Public Radio in the last two days. This morning she found time to speak with AJN about her experiences. […]
Photo by AlphaTangoBravo/Adam Baker, via Flickr.
The following comes to us from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC):
Swine Flu Guidance for Clinicians & Public Health Professionals [as of April 29, 2009, 1:45 AM ET]
http://www.cdc.gov/swineflu/guidance/
Clinicians should consider the possibility of swine influenza virus infections in patients presenting with febrile respiratory illness. If swine flu is suspected, clinicians should obtain a respiratory swab for swine influenza testing and place it in a refrigerator (not a freezer). Once collected, the clinician should contact their state or local health department to facilitate transport and timely diagnosis at a state public health laboratory.
Interim Guidance for Clinicians on Identifying and Caring for Patients with Swine-origin Influenza A (H1N1) Virus Infection [as of April 29, 2009 2:00 AM ET]
http://www.cdc.gov/swineflu/identifyingpatients.htm
Interim guidance is provided here for nurses and clinicians who might provide care for patients with swine-origin influenza A (H1N1) or suspected swine-origin influenza A (H1N1) virus infection. It will be periodically updated as information becomes available.
Transmission
Transmission of swine-origin influenza A (H1N1) is being studied as part of the ongoing outbreak investigation, but limited data available indicate that this virus is transmitted in ways similar to other influenza viruses. Seasonal human influenza viruses are spread from person to person primarily through large-particle respiratory droplet transmission (e.g., when an infected person coughs or sneezes near a susceptible person). Transmission via large-particle droplets requires close contact between source and recipient persons, […]