Gitmo Inmates Will Not Get H1N1 Vaccine
White House spokesman says Gitmo detainees will not get swine flu vaccines amid criticism.
7:36 p.m. CST, November 3, 2009
http://www.chicagotribune.com/features/sns-health-swine-flu-gitmo-detainees,0,2531102.story
WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House says detainees at Guantanamo Bay are not yet receiving vaccinations against the swine flu.
H1N1 Flu Confirmed In Iowa Cat
11/04/2009 10:20AM
A cat in Iowa has tested positive for the 2009 H1N1 influenza virus, state officials confirmed this morning, marking the first time a cat has been diagnosed with this strain of influenza.
The cat, which has recovered, is believed to have caught the virus from someone in the household who was sick with H1N1. There are no indications that the cat passed the virus on to any other animals or people.
Prior to this diagnosis, the 2009 H1N1 influenza virus had been found in humans, pigs, birds and ferrets.
The American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) and the American Association of Feline Practitioners (AAFP) are reminding pet owners that some viruses can pass between people and animals, so this was not an altogether unexpected event. Pet owners should monitor their pets’ health very closely, no matter what type of animal, and visit a veterinarian if there are any signs of illness.
The AVMA is actively tracking all instances of H1N1 in animals and posting updates on our Web site at www.avma.org/public_health/influenza/new_virus.
For more information, contact Michael San Filippo, AVMA media relations assistant, at 847-285-6687 (office), 847-732-6194 (cell), or msanfilippo@avma.org.
http://www.cattlenetwork.com/H1N1-Flu-Confirmed-In-Iowa-Cat/2009-11-04/Article.aspx?oid=932004
Adding to the thread:
Dirty, or unwashed, hands are a major source of infections.
This is true even in hospitals where, presumably, much more care is taken to scrub and disinfect hands than almost anywhere else.
The “WHO Guidelines on Hand Hygiene in Health Care (advanced draft),” states that:
“Failure to comply with hand hygiene is considered the leading cause of healthcare-associated infections.”
“Each year, at least two million patients in the USA acquire one or more healthcare-associated infections during their stay in hospital.”
“Every day 247 people die in the USA as a result of a health-associated infection.”
The number of infections passed by unwashed hands is probably much higher outside the hospital setting; infectious diseases, many caused by unclean hands, are the leading causes of death and disease worldwide and the third leading cause of death in the United States.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says that “hand washing is the single most important means of preventing the spread of infection.”
“To reduce the number of contagious infections spread by hand from person to person, experts recommend washing hands with soap and water for 20 seconds after using the bathroom, after touching a dog or cat, coughing or sneezing, changing diapers, handling money or before handling food or eating.”
http://www.harrisinteractive.com/NEWS/allnewsbydate.asp?NewsID=1000