North Bay Parry Sound District Health Unit News Release ******************** As anticipated, laboratory testing has confirmed three cases of mild H1N1 influenza virus among staff and children at a summer camp in the area.
North Bay Parry Sound District Health Unit News Release
********************
As anticipated, laboratory testing has confirmed three cases of mild H1N1 influenza virus among staff and children at a summer camp in the area. The individuals affected include one adult and two children. All cases were mild and no hospitalizations were required.
“H1N1 is in the general population so there’s no reason why it would be excluded from camps. We had anticipated that this would occur,” says Dr. Jim Chirico, Acting Medical Officer of Health for the North Bay Parry Sound District Health Unit.
Parents are advised to keep their kids at home if they are suffering from influenza-like symptoms. Also be sure to check with camps about any influenza-like illness that may be occurring at their camp. Parents should use their best judgment about sending children with special medical concerns to camp, as they may be more adversely affected by the H1N1 virus. Otherwise there is no need to exclude children from summer camps as all of the H1N1 cases in the summer camps have been mild with no hospitalizations. The summer camp involved is managing fine. They isolated the campers who were ill and have been following the Ministry of Health and Long Term Care’s camp guidelines and infection control precautions. These directions along with H1N1 preventative measures can be found in the Guidelines for the Prevention and Management of H1N1 at Summer Camps. All camps in the district have this guideline and it is available online in the red HEALTH ALERT box on the main page at www.healthunit.biz.
Local H1N1 case numbers and severity levels are posted and updated regularly on the main page of the Health Unit’s website. This data, along with general H1N1 information, can also be found at www.healthunit.biz.
The Health Unit advises everyone to take an active role in protecting their health. The best way to do this is to stay informed and to practice basic infection control measures. In general, everyone should:
1. Wash your hands well and often, with soap and warm, running water or hand sanitizer.
2. Sneeze or cough into your sleeve.
3. Clean and disinfect common surfaces.
4. Keep doing what you normally do, but stay home if you are sick.
Dr. Chirico recommends anyone with mild to moderate flu symptoms, like fever, cough, headache, sore throat, or muscle and joint pain, contact their health care provider or call Telehealth. For those with more severe flu symptoms, especially shortness of breath, go to a hospital emergency room.
QUICK FACTS
• Symptoms of the H1N1 flu virus (human swine flu) are similar to seasonal influenza (flu) including headache, chills and cough followed by fever, loss of appetite, muscle aches and fatigue, runny nose, sneezing, watery eyes and throat irritation. Nausea, vomiting and diarrhea may occur in adults as well as in children. In more severe cases, or in people with chronic conditions, complications such as pneumonia may develop.
• People who have symptoms of influenza-like illness should contact their health care provider or call Telehealth Ontario at 1-866-797-0000. For more information about H1N1 flu virus visit www.healthunit.biz or call the Health Unit at (705) 474-1400 or 1-800-563-2808.
