8/14/2019 Preparing for a Swine Flu Pandemic

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 What is a pandemic? Who is at risk? What will happen? Aremy children safe? As the media reports that a swine flu (H1N1)pandemic is imminent, these thoughts may occur to you.Knowing what to expect, how to prepare and where to findneeded information and support can increase your resilience,

decrease your stress and minimize the impact on you and yourloved ones during these difficult times.

 What to Prepare ForThe swine flu outbreak has gained prominence since it began in April 2009. A flu pandemic is a global outbreak of disease thatoccurs when a new influenza virus appears to which people havelittle or no immunity. It affects people of all ages, backgroundsand locations, causing high numbers of illness and death as wellas social disruption. During a flu pandemic:

• Manypeoplearelikelytobecomeillatthesametime.

• People who are infected with swine flu may be isolated, whichmeans that they are separated from healthy people to reducethe chances of spreading the flu.

• Peoplewhohavebeenexposedtotheflu virus may be

quarantined. This means those who have been exposed to theflu virus are physically separated from those who have not been exposed.

• Apracticecalled“socialdistancing”maybeineffecttolimit

face-to-face interaction in order to prevent exposure andtransmission of the flu virus. Manythingsmay be shut downor be canceled, including public transportation, gatheringplaces, events, schools and businesses.

• Communityservicesandutilitiesmaybedisrupted.

• Healthcareservicescouldbecomeoverwhelmed.

These circumstances could significantly affect you. You may needto reorganize your life to care for loved ones or to receive care. You may lose income if your workplace closes or you becomeill. School closures can result in the need for home-schoolingor other activities for homebound children. Access to food and

other household goods may become limited. The many changesin day-to-day living can cause anxiety and stress.

Coping with Stress and Anxiety Some ways that you can cope with stress and anxiety are—

• Getaccurateinformationfromreliablesources.

• Educateyourselfabouttheflupandemic.

• Maintainyournormaldailyroutine,ifyoucan.

• Exercise,eatwellandrest.

• Stayactive—physicallyandmentally.

• Stayintouchwithfamilyandfriends.

• Spendmoretimewithyourchildren. Talk with them(as is age appropriate) about swine flu.

• Maintainahopefuloutlook—bepreparedforthingstoget worse, but remember that governments and experts aroundthe world are working hard to make things better.

• Findcomfortinyourspiritualandpersonalbeliefs.

• Keepasenseofhumor.

Coping Through Preparedness

Being adequately prepared will significantly affect how you cope with stress and anxiety during a flu pandemic. It will help youfeel more in control and lower your stress. Your children willalsofeelmoresecureandlessanxious.Consideradoptingthefollowing preparedness strategies:

• Reducethelikelihoodofinfectionbyusinggoodpersonalhygiene and self-care practices.

— Wash your hands frequently with soap and water or analcohol-based sanitizer.

— Coughorsneezeintoatissueandplaceusedtissuesdirectly into the trash.

— If you do not have a tissue, cough or sneeze into your

elbow or upper sleeve.— After coughing or sneezing, clean your hands with soap

and water or an alcohol-based hand sanitizer.

— Stay at home if you are ill.

— Talk with your family and friends and make a plan fortaking care of one another should any of you become ill.

P u b l i c i n f o r m a t i o n S e r i e S

PreparingforaSwineFlu(H1N1)PandemicCopingandEmotionalWell-Being

8/14/2019 Preparing for a Swine Flu Pandemic

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• Keepatleastatwo-weeksupplyofnon-perishableeasy- to-prepare food, water and other critical household andhygiene goods.

• Keepmedicalsupplies,prescriptionandnon-prescription

drugs on hand.

• Investigatehowyourhealthinsurancecarrierplanstohandlecosts of treatment during a pandemic.

• Checkwithyouremployerregardingpoliciesfordealingwitha pandemic.

• Askaboutplansatyourchild’sschoolorday-carefordealing with a pandemic, and develop plans now for how you wouldkeep homebound children occupied.

Increase Your Psychological ResiliencePsychological resilience is your ability to“bounceback”fromdifficult events. Certainstrategiescanincreaseyourresilienceand bring about new emotional strengths. The following tips canhelpyoudealwithlife’sdifficulties,includingapandemic.

 Identify how you cope with a crisisIdentify your coping strengths. What other crises have occurredin your life? How did they affect you? How did you cope? Did

 your coping style work? Are there other ways you might cope?

 Foster healthy attitudes and beliefsCrisesanddifficultcircumstancesarestressfulbutcanbeovercome. Focusonfindingsolutionsandwaystoimprove   your situation.

Choose nurturing and healthy behaviorsIdentify your goals and move toward them, even though progressmay seem slow at times. Take decisive action in protecting andpreparing yourself and your loved ones, rather than letting thepandemic situation make your choices for you.

Professional HelpSeek professional mental health care for yourself or your loved

ones if you or they experience—

• Lossofsleep,frequentnightmaresordisruptiveandintrusivethoughts.

• Feelingsofdepressionorfeelingsthatleadtoaninabilitytoengage in usual activities.

• Disorientation,extremememorydifficultiesorlosingawareness of time, date and place.

• Hallucinationsordelusions,suchashearingorseeingthingsthat are not here, extremely unrealistic thinking or excessivepreoccupation with an idea or thought.

• Apreviouslyidentifiedmentalhealthconditionrecursor

 becomes worse.

If these circumstances occur, contact your personal physicianor mental health provider. If you are currently working with amental health provider, ask how services will be provided duringa pandemic, and consider or discuss how you might get neededsupport or assistance from family and friends. You can also seek local mental health resources by contacting the U.S. NationalMentalHealthInformationCenterat www.mentalhealth.samhsa.gov/databases/ or 1-800-789-2647 .

Stay Informed• Thesituationwithswineflucanchangedaily.Gather

information on a regular basis from reliable sources, suchastheCentersforDiseaseControlandPrevention(CDC)and your local or state health department. You can visittheCDCWebsiteat www.CDC.gov/swineflu/ for moreinformation.

• Stayinformed,butdonotconstantlywatchbroadcastnewsorcontinuallycheckonlinenewssources.Excessiveattention

to news coverage can be unnecessarily stressful, especially forchildren.

• Seekinformationonpublicservicesthatmayclose,sothat you can plan ahead.

 You can find additional information on planning andpreparing for pandemic flu at www.RedCross.org and

 www.pandemicflu.gov/.

 Stay connected Stay in touch with others by telephone, e-mail and other meansshould you be unable to get around due to movement restrictionmeasures.

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During a pandemic or other disaster, you can let others know of  your well-being by registering on the Safe and Well Web site athttps://disastersafe.redcross.org/.

Name:

Home Address:

Important Phone Numbers

Local Health Department:

Local Red Cross Chapter:

Family Health Provider:

Mental Health Provider:

Emergency Contact Card