JANUARY ● FEBRUARY ● 2013

A f

Compiled by| Jordan Colwell, MHA, BSN, RN

Contact| Jordan Colwell, MHA, BSN, RN

P 308.630.1450E Jordan.Colwell@rwmc.net

4021 Avenue B Scottsbluff NE 69361

rwhs.org

Find us on Facebook/RegionalWest

A f

Letter from the Editor 4

Shared Governance Council Chairs 5

Skin Care Note 6

Calendar of Events 6

Magnet Moment 7

Professional Developement 8

Safety Sense 10

Shared Governance 10

Shared Governance Updates 11

Service Excellence 12

Breakfast with Shirley 13

Table of Contents

4

Welcome to the first Magnetic Times for 2013. I hope you had a great holiday season and have your New Year’s resolutions set and ready to achieve! First and foremost, I would like to take this time to say thank you to Karla Edwards for her submissions to the Magnetic Times. As many of you know, Karla has left for a new opportunity in her career. Best of luck, Karla!

The article I would like to draw everyone’s attention to is “Put ‘Caring About People’ Back In Healthcare” by Gwen Faust, MS, RN. There are two factors in health care today that have made our jobs more demanding and time consuming. They are increased regulatory and reporting requirements which impacts the overall health of patients. The article goes on to elaborate what caring looks like and what caring does not look like.

What caring looks like: When you administer a pain medication to a patient, provide instruction on when the next dose is due, not

to wait if he or she is in pain, and most importantly, encourage the patient to request the medication and take it before the pain becomes intolerable and/or unmanageable.

What caring does not look like: A physician rounds and he informs the patient he or she will be discharged that day. The nurse was not present during rounds and has not been informed of the plan for discharge. Therefore, the patient has to provide the nurse with the information so that he or she can investigate.

The patient experience will create a lasting impression about the staff and organization. What impression do you want to create?

Yours in Health,

F. Jordan ColwellF. JORDAN COLWELL, MHA, BSN, RNSurvey Preparedness/Magnet Coordinator Jordan Colwell

5

2013 Shared Governance Council Chair and Co-Chair

Care & Practice Council Meets 3rd Thursday of each month in the Keith Room 2 to 3:30 p.m Chair Janelle Schroeder, RN (Quality) schroej@rwmc.net Chair-elect Brooke Borgman, RN (Cardiac Cath Lab) brooke.borgman@rwmc.net Management Advisor Sarah Shannon, RN (Director of RCU and Float Pool) shannos@rwmc.net

Quality & Safety Council Meets 3rd Thursday of each month in the Keith Room 9:30 to 11 a.m. Chair Liz Ossian, RN (3 East-Medical Oncology) ossiane@rwmc.net Chair-elect Christy Jay, RN (Surgery) jaycca@rwmc.net Management Advisor Margo Ferguson, MT (ASCP) (Director of Quality Resource) fergusm@rwmc.net

Nurse/Physician Council Meets 3rd Thursday of each month in the SB II 7 to 8 a.m. Chair Paulette Schnell, RN (Community Health) schnelpt@rwmc.net Chair-elect Sheli Goodwin, RN (Home Health) goodwis@rwmc.net Management Advisor Nancy Hicks-Arsenault, RN (Director of ER, PCU, ICU) nancy.hicks-arsenault@rwmc.net

Evidenced-Based Practice Council Meets 3rd Thursday of each month in the Keith Room 3:30 to 5 p.m Chair Alicia Kunz, RN (Education) alicia.kunz@rwmc.net Chair-elect Carrie Herr, RN (Outpatient Surgery) carrie.herr@rwmc.net Management Advisor Susan Backer, RN (Pt. Safety Officer/Clinical Nurse Specialist) backers@rwmc.net

Professional Practice Council Meets 3rd Thursday of each month in the Keith Room 12:30 to 2 p.m. Chair Lenna Booth, RN (Cardiac Cath. Lab) boothl@rwmc.net Chair-elect Nina Palomo, RN (Interventional Radiology) palomom@rwmc.net Management Advisor Diana Baratta, RN (Director of Medical-Surgical Services) diana.baratta@rwmc.net

Night Shift Meets the fourth Wednesday of each month in the Monument Room. Chair John Furman, RN (House Supervisor) furmanj@rwmc.netChair-elect Matt Blaylock, RN (ICU/PCU Staff nurse) matt.blaylock@rwmc.net Management Advisor Stephen Matthews, RN (ICU/PCU) stephen.matthews@rwmc.net

6

Did you know there is pressure ulcer prevention information in each patient admission packet? This is patient [and staff] education on how to prevent pressure ulcers during their hospital stay. This information is also useful after dismissal. So when your patient or their family member asks you for information regarding pressure ulcer or pressure ulcer prevention, you have an additional resource and can refer them to their admission packet information.

The ‘Information on Pressure Ulcer’ fact sheet includes:

• Risk factors

• Prevention

• Interventions

• Referral to Wound Clinic (recently added)

By Rachelle Noe, RN

Event Date Time Place

Residency Class Feb. 27 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Building 211/HarmsPLAS-Provider Course Feb. 26-27 7:45 a.m. to 5 p.m. South Plaza 1202Trauma Nurse Core Course (TNCC) Feb. 21-22 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Building 211/HarmsJoint Commission Fair Feb. 27 7 a.m. to 12 noon South FoyerJoint Commission Fair Feb. 28 1 to 5 p.m. South FoyerNurse/Physicians Council Feb. 21 7 to 8 a.m. Keith RoomCoordinating Council Feb. 28 8 to 9:30 a.m. Keith RoomQuality and Safety Council Feb. 28 9:30 to 11 a.m. Keith RoomProfessional Practice Council Feb. 28 12:30 to 2 p.m. Keith RoomCare and Practice Council Feb. 28 2 to 3:30 p.m. Keith RoomEvidence-Based Practice Council Feb. 28 3:30 to 5 p.m. Keith RoomNight Shift Council Feb. 21 16:00-17:00 Goshen

Save the Date

Harms Advanced

Technology Center

APRIL 30 3 to 6 p.m.

6:30 to 9:30 p.m.

MAY 1 9 a.m. to Noon

EDUCATION

To register: RWHS employees please register on

Swank Health.

To contact: For questions contact Alicia Kunz

Alicia.Kunz@rwmc.net

Speaker: Juli Burney

Multiple award winning teacher, humorist and author, Juli makes

an amazing connection with her audiences. She is able to entertain

with the ability of a headlining comedian while either motivating or

training with ease as a nationally recognized speaker. Juli has been

recognized by the state of Nebraska as Artist of the Year because of

her ability to help improve people’s lives through humor and effec-

tive use of communication tools.

She has worked in all 48 continental United States and Canada,

and has been commissioned by a variety of associations from the

National Endowment for the Arts to Fortune 500 companies to de-

velop training programs that stick. She has filmed for Showtime and

HBO, along with making numerous guest appearances on radio and

television programs. Her humor is insightful, delightful, universal

and enlightening.

Harms Advanced Technology CenterAPRIL 30 3 to 6 p.m.6:30 to 9:30 p.m.MAY 1 9 a.m. to Noon

EDUCATION

To register: RWHS employees please register on

Swank Health. To contact: For questions contact Alicia Kunz

Alicia.Kunz@rwmc.net

Speaker: Juli Burney

Multiple award winning teacher, humorist and author, Juli makes

an amazing connection with her audiences. She is able to entertain

with the ability of a headlining comedian while either motivating or

training with ease as a nationally recognized speaker. Juli has been

recognized by the state of Nebraska as Artist of the Year because of

her ability to help improve people’s lives through humor and effec-

tive use of communication tools. She has worked in all 48 continental United States and Canada,

and has been commissioned by a variety of associations from the

National Endowment for the Arts to Fortune 500 companies to de-

velop training programs that stick. She has filmed for Showtime and

HBO, along with making numerous guest appearances on radio and

television programs. Her humor is insightful, delightful, universal

and enlightening.

7

Magnet Moment | Nursing Peer Review 101By Liz Ossian, BSN, RN

This year you may begin hearing about nursing peer review. Physicians already have a process for reviewing their care, and nationwide, hospitals and state nursing boards are increasingly implementing peer review as a method for improving nursing care. We should always be striving to improve the way we deliver patient care, and nursing peer review is one way we can be proactive in preventing future adverse outcomes. Our ultimate goal is safe, effective, high quality patient care.

The review process is easy to understand. Cases can be identified through incident reports, risk management, staff referrals, and so on. These typically include cases in which the patient has an unexpected outcome, requires transfer to a higher level of care, or other unusual events.

Once a case is identified, a group of nurses will look at the medical record to determine if nursing actions were appropriate for the patient. Was the standard of care met? This involves looking at both system and individual components to see if any changes should be made in order to improve future care. Nurses involved in the case will be interviewed to fully understand the

events that occurred. By carefully examining the medical record and talking to the nurses involved, this group will be able to identify opportunities for

improvement to prevent undesirable outcomes in the future.

Example: Let’s say we have a patient who slowly accumulates fluid over several shifts. Eventually the patient is transferred to ICU because of cardiac arrhythmia or respiratory distress. What could have prevented this? Did we have an accurate list of their home medications? Was the patient weighed at least daily? Was I/O recorded according to unit policy? Did the nurse(s) follow established routines and policies? There are many questions that can be answered by looking at the available information and perhaps new recommendations can be made if we determine the event occurred in spite of our established protocols. Safe patient care with positive

outcomes is what we all want!

If you are interested in becoming a member of the Quality and Safety Committee or have any questions about nursing peer review, don’t hesitate to contact me!

8

Keara Brunner, RN Certified Lactation Consultant

Since I had the desire to help people, I decided to become a nurse at a young age. It helped

that I didn't mind the sight of blood and having four brothers, one of them was always getting hurt. It probably also helped that nursing runs in the family. My grandma was a nurse along with my aunt, great aunts, and many cousins.

I spend a lot of my extra time helping with the junior high youth group at my church. I also enjoy reading books, going to the movies, watching plays, snowboarding, and spending time with friends and family.

I took my pre-nursing classes at Chadron State College, then moved to Scottsbluff where I attended UNMC College of Nursing and received my BSN. After nursing school I was able to get a job here at Regional West on 2 East-Ortho/Neuro floor. I worked there for two years before I transferred to NICU, where I have now been for almost four years.

The thing I like about being a nurse is the variety of people I get to meet and the people I get to work with. But what I like most about being a nurse is when you get to see how you have helped someone—that you have made a difference in someone’s life. I also like that I can most days honestly say that I enjoy going to work and look forward to my job.

I decided to get my certification mainly because it was a requirement for my new job as NICU lactation counselor. I did want to get the certification and am very glad I did because it has been very helpful, not only for my job in the NICU but also with helping moms on the postpartum floor, along with family and friends who have had breastfeeding issues.

Some advice I would give new nurses would be to encourage them to ask many questions and remind them it will take time to learn things because they won't know everything on their first day as a new nurse. Respect the experienced nurses because they can teach you a lot. The most important thing to remember is you will never know everything and there is always something new you can learn.

Sundae Clay, RN

Certified Rehabilitation Nurse

Laura Wolfe, RN Certified Emergency Nurse

I was raised in Scottsbluff and married my high school sweetheart. I have two children, a 14 year old daughter and a one year old son. My hobbies include camping and fishing with my family, four-wheeling, and hunting. I

graduated from UNMC College of Nursing in December 2001 with my BSN and worked in Dialysis for the first five years of my nursing career.

After doing a nursing internship at a Level I Trauma Center in Tulsa, Okla., I realized that emergency nursing was my true dream and it just so happened that the ER here at Regional West had an opening. The thing I love about ER

Specialty Certifications

Continued to page 9.

9

nursing is the variety of patients we see and the skills we use. We see all ages of patients, we see illnesses (acute and chronic), injuries (including trauma), and we are constantly being challenged mentally by the split second life and death decisions we are frequently required to make.

What I like most about being a nurse is being given the opportunity to make a difference in someone's life when they need it the most.

I decided to obtain my emergency nursing certification in order to provide the best care possible to our patients. I also think patients recognize and appreciate when they know the nurses taking care of them have gone that extra mile and have worked hard to achieve certification status.

If I could give a new nurse some advice it would be to never stop learning and never lose your passion for what you do.

Continued from page 8.

10

Think about your work responsibilities-what you do on the job every day. What is your role at the hospital? Is it direct hands-on care? Do you keep the environment safe and equipment repaired? Do you provide lab tests? Are you involved with coding and billing? The reality is each of us has either a direct impact or an indirect impact on the people we serve – our patients.

Everything we do impacts the care and outcome of the patient. We may work in different departments but we are all here for one reason–our patients. We may not see each other or directly communicate with each other, but we are all part of a big team that takes care of people’s health care needs. As we move into 2013 we are going to learn more about working effectively in teams, developing cross monitoring skills, and learning more about situational awareness and shared mental model.

In 2012 we began developing skills that helped us put patients first, work together, and improve daily. Now it’s time to put all that together and practice working more effectively in teams.

We have a lot planned this year to help us work better together. One activity is simulation, with a

team currently working toward that end. There are two types of simulation, high fidelity and low fidelity. High fidelity simulation is practicing a scenario with the natural work team in the environment the scenario would occur, using the equipment and materials needed. Low fidelity simulation is didactic learning using hypothetical situations where participants are asked to describe a response to the situation rather than respond. In simulation we use the tools we’ve already learned, such as the communication bundle, speaking up for safety, and critical thinking.

Teamwork is the theme for 2013. I am excited to be involved in the next steps of our safety culture initiative.

Together Everyone Achieves More.

“Tell me and I will forget;

Show me and I may remember;

Involve me and I will understand.”

--Confucius 450 BCSusan BackerSUSAN BACKER, MSN, APRN‑CNS, ACNS‑BCPatient Safety Officer/CNS

Shared Governance Council Updates

Care & Practice Council

Quality & Safety Council

Nurse/Physician Council

Evidenced-Based Practice Council

Professional Practice Council

Night Nursing Council

11

Shared Governance Council Updates

Care & Practice Council

Quality & Safety Council

Nurse/Physician Council

Evidenced-Based Practice Council

Professional Practice Council

Night Nursing Council

Fall Prevention Program "A" work day took place on Wednesday, Jan. 9 from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. The goal of the workday was to design the evidence-based procedures and protocols as well as begin the education plan for the Fall Prevention Program at RWMC.

Nursing Fatigue: The Council's recommendation is to hand off the project to the Evidence-Based Practice Council, who has an interest in this topic. Janelle and Alicia met to discuss the transition and review materials including the literature summary and PICOT question. Thanks to the EBP council for taking on this project and what great team work between councils!

Working on Nursing Peer Review. Developing recommendation for consideration. A draft policy has been developed. A pilot of the draft was conducted with two cases. During the pilot some areas of improvement were identified and the council is working to address those. Feedback from everyone involved in the pilot was extremely positive.

The council is working to recruit some active physicians. We are struggling with attendance and will be working on strategies to improve.

In the process of determining what project the council will take on for 2012-2013 as well as some long-term goals. Considering a re-visit of SBAR, handoff.

Working on a survey for staff about evidence-based practice and what support staff need from the council. The survey will include questions about journal club. The council is working on a distribution plan. Please encourage your staff to participate in the survey process. Evidence-based practice education classes have had low attendance the last year. Will be seeking input on how the revamp/revise the class to improve attendance.

Have taken on the Nursing Fatigue project from Care and Practice.

Wrapping up work on the clinical ladder recommendations. Will begin working on a recommendation for improvements to the Low Census Policy as requested. Will also begin work on a social media statement. Will look into a concern brought forth about care conferences. The concern being who can call or organize a conference. The council will be working with leadership on this topic.

The first council meeting had six staff in attendance. The Chair-elect for this council is Matt Blaylock. Next meeting is scheduled for February. John will continue to recruit members for this council.

► Continued to page 16

12

Karla EdwardsK ARL A EDWARDSFormer Director Service Excellence

New survey questions Three new questions were added to our patient satisfaction survey in July. These questions, known as the Expanded HCAHPS questions, focus on how well staff transitioned the patient’s care from the hospital setting to home or another facility such as long-term care.

The questions are:

• During this hospital stay, staff took my preferences and those of my family or caregiver into account in deciding what my health care needs would be when I left.

• When I left the hospital, I had a good understanding of the things I was responsible for in managing my health.

• When I left the hospital, I clearly understood the purpose for taking each of my medications.

Nationwide, approximately one in five Medicare patients discharged from the hospital are readmitted within 30 days. That is in the neighborhood of 2.6 million seniors and at a cost of more than $26 billion a year. As of October 1 last year, hospitals are fined by Medicare for excessive readmits. CMS has added the three new questions to help hospitals pinpoint gaps and consequently decrease the number of readmits.

What can you do?

1. Remember, discharge planning begins at admission. Pre-admit, really. Ensure the patient is properly informed and there has not been conflicting information between the physician’s office and the hospital. Tell the patient what he or she needs to ask their physician prior to the procedure. Remember, this is foreign to them and they don’t know what they

don’t know. They are relying on you to be the expert and lead the way.

2. Explain the “why” to the “what” of their discharge instructions. That connects the dots, making them more apt to be compliant. It also helps them to explain the details to their family and friends and improves their understanding of their care once they leave the hospital.

3. Look for teachable moments. Don’t try to cram everything they need to know into the two hours before dismissal. Every time you go into the patient’s room, take the opportunity to go over something they will need to know when they leave the hospital. Giving the information in small doses will help their retention. Don’t worry about repetition – that’s good.

4. Identify potential barriers. Why might the patient not be able to care for himself or herself after leaving the hospital? How can you help them overcome these barriers? Assess patients for their knowledge, skill, and attitude related to their continued care. Are they in denial? Does it take two people but they live alone? How can you help?

Our top box scores on these three questions from July through October are 45.1, 56.5, and 62.1 percent respectively. For example, what that means is 45.1 percent of our patients said we always took their preferences in consideration when preparing for discharge. By using the four tips, you can greatly improve a patient’s chance of not having to come back to the hospital in the near future, and improve our scores at the same time.

13

January

Attending: Jackie Delatour,Michelle Dillon, Marcella Wildeman, Kathi Yost, Shirley Knodel,

Questions, Concerns, etc.

| Talked about the Nebraska Legislature and what was up and coming with Nurse Practitioners scope of practice.

| A clarification was requested regarding the rumors that the hospital is for sale or has been sold. Shirley clarified that we are neither sold nor for sale. She explained that all hospitals out of necessity are looking at ways to contain costs, share costs, increase revenue. That in some cases means partnering with other systems for services such as IT and that we are in the beginning stages of exploring that. There was great interest among the group to explore other IT systems due to dissatisfaction with our current system.

| Talked about the UNMC Nursing student clinical rotations and the different way these clinical rotations are structured now.

| Talked about the Leadership class at UNMC and spending time with preceptors as part of the total clinical rotation.

| Talked about the discussion regarding the Governor’s proposal on state income tax and state sales tax. There was sentiment among the group that the state income tax is a barrier to recruitment of new nurses. There is also concern that this does not result in cuts to healthcare.

| Discussed the new nurse finance committee that will be part of our shared governance model.

| Discussed the IT challenges we have here at the hospital and what future plans look like.

| Discussed the possibilities of loan repayment for students that are going to school. Student works for Banner health and has tuition reimbursement as follows: Part-time 2500 and full-time 5000. Also loan repament for newly hired students.

| Discussed that one new nurse in OB was told by Jane in a class presentation from HR that she would receive loan repayment as part of hire on and then when she hired on in 2010 she was told by HR, “We no longer provide loan repayment.” There was sentiment that loan repayment is a big recruitment draw.

14

The Students Have Become the TeachersCONGRATULATIONS TO OUR GRADUATES! The newest members of Regional West Medical Center’s Emergency Department and Intensive Care Unit staff have completed their first Critical Care Transition Course. These colleagues were either new graduate nurses or nurses new to a critical care department. This pilot course was created by Linda Fowler and Alice Fillingham with the guidance and encouragement of Director Nancy Hicks-Arsenault and ICU/ED management teams. This 12 week course was divided by systems and included lectures, case discussion, and simulation.

Each course included a brief lecture on a system: what’s normal, what’s abnormal, and what would one really not like to see? The course objectives included combining real world application of what

could go wrong, what one could expect, and consideration of worst case scenario. Lectures were followed by discussion of patients with conditions pertaining to that week’s topic. This was especially interesting as the ED staff could share their experiences and then ICU staff could complete the patient’s story throughout his or her critical care treatment. The case discussion with both sides of the story assisted in painting a more complete picture for our new colleagues. The experience also helped build departmental bridges. The final portion of each week’s course included hands-on use of equipment, troubleshooting, and simulation.

The hands-on equipment education was reported to be the most valuable and we found some of our colleagues in the Critical Care

By: Alice Fillingham, BSN, RN, CEN

15

► Continued from page 14

Transition Course to be our super users for equipment in their respective departments. We then asked these individuals to share what they had learned with the staff at an equipment blitz. The students became the teachers and did a fabulous job presenting to the Critical Care Departments! We look forward to starting a second course in August and would like to offer this course to not only new hires but to seasoned ED/ICU employees who wish to gain additional knowledge in the field of critical care.

We would like to recognize and thank our colleagues who completed this course for their professionalism and contribution to making the pilot course a success!

16

CC Objectives 2012-2013

Shared Governance Redesign

• Shared Governance Model Update

• New Council: “The role of the Nursing Management Council is to manage resources as defined in the strategic plan and conceptual framework. The council examines the delivery of patient care as it is affected by the availability of human, fiscal, material, support, and systems linkage resources. This council promotes the responsible and creative use of resources so that expenses are controlled while exceeding the health care expectation of the patients and their significant others.” -Shared Governance Toolkit. Names for the council being considered include: Nurse-Finance Council and Resource Management Council

• Communication between UPC and CC

• LPN/CNA Membership: Care and Practice; Quality/Safety; Evidence-Based Practice Councils

• Bylaws development

• Contribution to Plan for Magnet Designation

Coordinating Council is also working with Jordan Colwell and Education to identify content and appropriate speaker for Nurse’s Day.

► Continued from page 11

Shared Governance Council Updates

Coordinating Council

17

The “Emergency Management Coffee Break Training” is a bi-weekly publication for all employees regardless of skill level, emergency or disaster response expertise, or position. The objective of each lesson is to increase employee awareness and expose employees to Regional West’s Emergency Management Program.

Why do we conduct emergency exercises?

We use exercises to test our emergency plans. We do not want to discover a flaw in our plans during an actual event. Contrary to popular view, we do not conduct exercises because the Joint Commission says we must. We do it to prepare our employees and to test our plans.

Exercises are not just the big full-scale event you see every year. Exercises also include workshops, seminars, and tabletop exercise. We do not announce every exercise. We purposely refrain from announcing some exercises so we can evaluate employee response.

Not only do the exercises test our plans, they test our employees response, too. We expect employees to participate fully in exercises as long as we

do not compromise patient care or safety. This means using the radios, simulating care of simulated patients, and generally responding as you would if this was a true emergency.

Many times, we hear employees saying, “Well, this is only a drill, I would do this during a true emergency.” Any employee who believes this, is fooling himself. We know people perform as they practice, so practicing exactly what you would do in an actual event is the right thing to do during exercises.

After we hold an exercise or experience an actual event, we develop an After Action Report (AAR). The AAR reviews the exercise or event and discusses major strengths and areas for improvement.

If we find areas needing improvement, a Corrective Action Plan (CAP) is developed. The CAP outlines the items needing improvement and identifies the responsible person. It also lists an anticipated correction date. When the Joint Commission is onsite, they will ask about our corrective actions and changes

we made to the EOP in response to the CAP.

As always, if you have any emergency management questions, contact David Edwards, Emergency Preparedness Coordinator at Ext. 2099 or edwardd@rwmc.net.

Emergency ExercisesBy David Edwards

18

Safety and Occupational Health

State Health Department Urges “Get A Flu Shot”The Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services is strongly recommending that all individuals age six months and older have a flu immunization as soon as possible if they have not done so already.

Seasonal flu is now widespread and has resulted in many hospitalizations throughout the state. In Lancaster County, two deaths due to influenza have been confirmed by the state health department. Both the adult and child who died were not vaccinated against influenza.

Uninsured children from six months to 19 years of age who qualify for the Vaccine for Children program are eligible for flu shots at no cost.

“We want to emphasize that young children are at high risk for complications from the flu. All children age six months and older and all caregivers who have contact with them should get a flu vaccination,” said Sandy Preston, RN, Regional West Community Health Nurse and Immunization Coordinator.

This year, the flu vaccine protects against two strains of influenza type A and one strain of type B.

“Even those who have had the flu should get vaccinated once they are well. If not, they remain susceptible to getting one of the other strains of flu,” said Preston.

You can schedule an appointment at Regional West Community Health by calling 308.630.2700, Option 1. Flu vaccinations are also available from local health providers and pharmacies.

For more information about the flu or vaccinations, please call Regional West Community Health at 308.630.1126.

Flu Facts

The flu is NOT a stomach/intestinal illness

The flu is an infection of the nose, throat, and lungs caused by influenza viruses. It is a highly infectious disease that can cause mild to severe illness like pneumonia, and can lead to death.

Symptoms

• Fever, cough, sore throat, headache, fatigue, chills, achiness.

• Everyone should consider getting immunized against the flu!

• Those who are higher risk for complications from the flu should receive the flu vaccination. Those at high risk include:

• Children under age five (especially six months to two years).

• Household contacts of persons at high risk for flu complications, especially babies six months and younger who are at high risk but are too young be vaccinated.

• Adults age 65 years and older,

• People who care for those at high risk.

• Pregnant women.

• Health care workers.

• People with asthma, neurological and neuro-developmental conditions, chronic lung disease, heart disease, blood disorders, diabetes, kidney disorders, liver disorders, metabolic disorders, obesity, a weakened immune system, and those under age 19 who receive long-term aspirin therapy.

• People living in nursing homes and other long-term care facilities.

Reduce your flu risk

• Vaccination is the best prevention. Full protection occurs about two weeks after vaccination.

• Stay home if you have flu symptoms.

• Avoid people who have symptoms.

• Wash hands thoroughly and frequently.

• Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue or your sleeve when you cough or sneeze.

19