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/HOUSTON HOME JOURNAL
HEALTH
Should I go to the Emergency Room?
„ Special to the Journal
The winter months seem
to bring more illness than
' other times of the year. When
people experience the flu or
' other flu-like symptoms such
' as colds and coughs, one of
the most frequent questions
' asked is, “Should I go to the
’Emergency Room?”
“Patients with colds, flu
’ and flu-like symptoms along
' with other medical problems
*■ such as eye infections, insect
[ and animal bites, rashes, back
'pain, minor cuts and abra
'sions, minor burns, minor
4 abdominal pain, diarrhea
and vomiting should consid
er, if possible, visiting their
'family doctor or one of our
'local Med-Stop urgent care
* centers for treatment,” said
' Dana Humphrey, RN, Nurse
Manager for Perry Hospital’s
Emergency Department. “By
-"doing so, they are most likely
going to receive care in a
‘more timely manner than in
the Emergency Department.
Take action against the flu: Facts you need to know
Special to the Journal
This winter, many children
and adults in Georgia will
experience flu-like symp
toms, and some will deal
with a severe strain of the
flu.
Each year, 10 to 20 per
cent of Americans become
ill, approximately 114,000
are hospitalized, and more
than 36,000 die from influ
enza and related complica
tions.
“Influenza (flu) is a viral
infection that can cause
a severe illness with seri
ous life-threatening com
plications in children as
■Veil as adults,” says Dr. M.
Ogunsakin, infectious dis
ease specialist and mem
■ber of the medical staffs of
Houston Medical Center and
Perry Hospital.
In addition to flu shots,
Houston Healthcare urges
adults and children to take
the following steps to help
prevent the flu:
Tips for Fighting the Flu
at Work
The tight quarters and poor ventilation of many work
environments can make you susceptible to colds and
flu. Follow these 10 tips to stay well and productive this
season:
1. Wash your hands frequently. Hot water and soap
are best, but if you don’t have easy access to a sink,
keep alcohol-based disposable wipes or gel sanitizers
on hand.
2. Keep keyboards, telephones, doorknobs and sur
faces that people touch frequently clean with a disin
fectant and paper towels.
3. If you can, crack open a window to air out your
space.
4. Make sure your workplace is stocked with plenty of
tissues.
5. Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth, where
germs enter your system.
6. Avoid close contact with someone who is sick.
7. Don’t smoke or allow smoking. If your office is not
smoke-free, ask that it becomes so.
8. Consider getting the flu vaccine.
9. Eat well, exercise and get enough sleep. A healthy
body is more likely to ward off germs than one that is
run-down.
10. Finally, if you are sick, stay home to recover and
protect your co-workers.
Call work and then call the doctor if:
• You have a fever or feel achy
• Your cough is deep and brings up green mucus
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Emergency Departments are
really for true emergencies
- those critical injuries and
illnesses that need imme
diate attention by a highly
specialized staff of medical
professionals.
“When we are treating
these critical patients, other
patients may have to wait
and that wait time can be
several hours, especially on
weekends and holidays dur
ing this busy time of year
when the flu season is upon
us.”
According to staff at Perry
Hospital and Houston Medical
Center, reasons to visit the
Emergency Department
include the following:
0 Chest Pain
□ Severe Abdominal Pain
0 Severe Cuts
D Serious Injuries
0 Major Burns
0 Head Trauma
Q Pregnancy
Complications
0 Fever in children three
• Avoid close contact with
people who are sick. When
you are sick, keep your dis
tance from others to protect
them from getting sick too.
• Stay home when you
are sick. If possible, stay
home from work, school and
errands when you are sick.
You will help prevent others
from catching your illness.
• Wash hands often, espe
cially after you have been
out in public or touched
things that other people
have touched, like a gro
cery cart, a gas pump, public
telephone or even a maga
zine in the doctor’s office.
Children should wash their
hands after sharing toys or
books with other friends or
classmates.
• Cover your cough. Cover
your mouth and nose with
a tissue when coughing or
sneezing. It may prevent
those around you from get
ting sick. Avoid touching
your eyes, nose or mouth.
• Teach your children to
• Your eyes are
bright red and
have a discharge
• You can not
hold down food
If you are feeling
up to it, you can
go to work without
worrying about
infecting your co
workers if:
• You are snif
fling, but do not
have a fever
• Your throat
tickles or you have
postnasal drip
• Your ear
aches
• You have a
sinus infection
"Once a patient is in our Emergency
Department, the physician will often
order specific tests, such as x-rays or
lab work, to diagnose the illness. These
tests add time, sometimes up to several
hours, to the overall visit."
- RN, Nurse Managerfor Perry Hospital's Emergency Department
Dana Humphrey
months and younger
Q Severe Allergic
Reactions
0 Open Fractures
0 Severe Nosebleeds
0 Respiratory Distress
0 Sexual Assault.
Emergency Departments
are designed to treat patients
in the order of the severity of
their illness or injury, not in
the order they arrive.
Persons experiencing a crit
ical or life-threatening illness
or injuxy, such as chest pain,
respiratory distress or head
cover their nose and mouth
with a tissue whenever they
cough or sneeze. Throw
away used tissue.
• Make sure your children
don’t share drinking glasses
or eating utensils.
The flu virus can be passed
from person to person begin
ning a day before the person
feels sick.
The virus is spread when
someone with the disease
coughs or sneezes and
spreads the virus. A person
can also get the flu by touch
ing a surface, such as a door
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The new Houston Healthcare website hasthe information
you need to take control of your health. There’s a wealth
of information online just waiting for you to discover:
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*
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go online to find out how we keep you healthy.
trauma, are treated imme
diately upon arrival. Those
with less serious ailments,
such as cold and flu symp
toms or sprains and strains,
are treated as soon as they
can be seen.
Humphrey and her staff,
along with the Emergency
Department staff at Houston
Medical Center, try to edu
cate patients not only about
when to use the Emergency
Department versus the doc
tor’s office and Med-Stop,
but also about why patients
knob, that has the flu virus
on it and then touching the
nose, mouth or eyes. Adults
may be contagious from one
day before developing symp
toms to up to seven days
after getting sick. Children
can be contagious for longer
than seven days.
If you or your child is
already sick with a sore
throat, cough and fever, how
can you tell if it is the flu
or just a common cold or
virus? You may have the flu
if you have the following
symptoms:
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 23, 2008 ♦
"Something to feel good about"
often experience a wait time
while in the Emergency
Department.
“Once a patient is in our
Emergency Department, the
physician will often order
specific tests, such as x-rays
or lab work, to diagnose
the illness. These tests add
time, sometimes up to sev
eral hours, to the overall
visit,” explains Humphrey.
“Certain treatments such
as suturing cuts, check
ing eye injuries or insert
ing special IV lines require
additional time as well as
attention from the physician
and Emergency Department
staff.
“When that happens, other
patients with less serious
symptoms have to wait.”
Houston Healthcare oper
ates two urgent care cen
ters - Houston Lake Med-
Stop (located on Highway
127 at Moody Road) and the
Pavilion Med-Stop (located
at Houston Mall) - both
• Became sick very quick
ly
• A high fever (102 degrees
or higher)
• Stuffy nose
• Headache
• Muscle aches
• Feels very tired and
achy
• Does not feel like eat
ing
• Chills
• Dry cough
• Gastro-intestinal symp
toms such as nausea, vomit
ing and diarrhea are much
more common among chil-
THE RIGHT CLICK
FOR GOOD HEALTH
Manage Your Health. We put the tools in your hands to
access your own interactive health record. Get health
information tailored just for you.
ft’s all here at the new www.hhc.org!
*
Houston Healthcare
staffed by a physician, reg
istered nurse and certified
medical assistants. Basic lab
and x-ray services are avail
able on-site.
The Houston Lake Med-
Stop is open Monday through
Saturday from 7 a.m. until
6:30 p.m., and the Pavilion
Med-Stop is open seven days
per week from 8 a.m. until
7:30 p.m.
“Our Emergency
Departments at Perry
Hospital and Houston
Medical Center are always
open and available to treat
patients 24 hours a day,
seven days per week, 365
days per year,” Humphrey
says. “Our goal is to provide
quality patient care in the
shortest time possible. We
ask that patients understand
that we must see patients
in the order of how critical
they are, and that we strive
to keep every patient’s wait
time as minimal as possi
ble.”
dren than adults.
• Usually children with
the flu do not have a sore
throat
• Sinus problems and ear
infections may develop
These symptoms typically
last about seven days. If you
or your child has a fever or
other flu-like symptoms, it
is important to stay home,
rest and drink plenty of flu
ids. If you suspect you or
your child has the flu, con
tact your family doctor or
pediatrician’s office as soon
as possible.
| www.hhc.org
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