 "Photo: Sarah Day")
Tommy Camden, the city’s environmental health services administrator and H1N1 liaison officer, stressed personal hygiene as the way to prevent the flu Tuesday in the Methodist Student Center as part of the Hot Potato lecture series.
Camden said the San Antonio Metropolitan Health District started tracking H1N1 earlier this year after deaths were reported in Mexico and cases started springing up in Texas and California.
If H1N1 were to spread and reports were of epic proportions, the first to be vaccinated would be pregnant women, children 6 months to 4 years of age, children 5 years old to 18 years with high-risk medical conditions, health care workers who provide patient care, and those in close contact with infants 6 months and younger, he said.
Camden stressed the importance of pre-vaccination attempts at staying healthy. Simple tasks like cleaning one’s hands thoroughly and frequently, along with proper “cough etiquette,” which involves coughing into one’s hands or sleeves and not all over others nearby, are important preventive measures, he said.
Camden said some possible steps toward dealing with the sick were allowing sick and at-risk staff to stay at home, finding ways to increase social distances, and considering how and when to dismiss staff if the pandemic grows to be too much to handle.
With 900,000 people in San Antonio considered to be at high risk of contracting the H1N1 flu, Camden stressed proper and frequent individual sanitization efforts.
Education sophomore Marcus Freeman asked Camden when “flu season” starts and what is the source of H1N1 and other viruses.
Camden said the general flu season starts around November and lasts until about April. Regarding the source of the virus, he said, “It’s found in nature.”
Freeman said his efforts in bringing up controversial points was to show that through time and despite mankind’s efforts, people still die from a deadly virus that is changing itself to do more damage to human immune systems.
Engineering freshman Jeff Gee said, “I thought I was going to hear an expert speak.” Although the presentation was informative, Gee said he felt as though it could have been better.
Gee said he found the basic information to be most vital, such as keeping safe from the virus by washing hands after being around high-traffic areas such as keyboards and stairwells.
Cristina Garansuay, early childhood education sophomore, said she thought the lecture lacked important information.
“He didn’t specify on symptoms,” Garansuay said. Urgency of medical care was also something she said she would liked to have been informed about, although she did like how Camden said the vaccinations are voluntary.
“I thought it was very informative,” said interdisciplinary studies sophomore Jasmine Gonzales.
For more information on the H1N1 virus, visit www.sanantonio.gov/health.
The next Hot Potato lecture will be at noon Tuesday at the Methodist Student Center. For more information, call 733-1441.
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