Tag Archives for Influenza

CDC: Rhode Island Hit with Widespread Flu

Published in the Woonsocket Call on January 6, 2018

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) says it’s a no brainer as to what issue I should cover this week. Being homebound for three or four days, with the flu, and my submittal deadline looming, I pen my commentary on widespread flu activity now being reported in Rhode Island.

CDC’s Influenza surveillance (ending Week 52) reported widespread influenza “flu” activity in 24 states including Rhode Island. This CDC warning recently triggered a requirement by the Rhode Island Department of Health (RIDOH} to require unvaccinated healthcare workers in a variety of health care settings to wear masks when entering a person’s room, serving food, or participating with patients in group activities.

The masking requirement helps protect healthcare workers from catching the flu, and helps protects patients who are often dealing with other serious health issues,” said Director of Health Nicole Alexander-Scott, MD, MPH., in a statement released on January 2. “For people who have not been vaccinated yet, it is not too late. Flu vaccine is the single best way to keep yourself and the people you love safe from the flu. Getting vaccinated today will provide you with months of protection,” she says.

According to the RIDOH, typical flu symptoms include having a fever, coughing, a sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, body aches, headache, chills and fatigue. Some people also may have vomiting and diarrhea. People may be infected with the flu, and have respiratory symptoms without a fever.

There are many types of illnesses or injuries even less severe cases of the flu do not require a visit to the emergency room, says RIDOH, noting that less severe cases of the flu will be treated more promptly by a primary care provider or in urgent care facilities. The department notes that going to an emergency room can oftentimes result in long waits because emergency room providers prioritize more serious injuries and medical conditions.

But, when do you seek out treatment for a nasty case of the flu? RIDOH says that difficulty in breathing or shortness in health, pain or pressure in the chest and having flu-like symptoms that improve and return with a fever and worse cough are clear warning signs to go immediately to an emergency room.

CDC expects that increased flu activity in the coming weeks, noting that the average duration of a flu season for the last five seasons has been 16 weeks, with a range of 11 weeks to 20 weeks. With significant flu still to come this season, CDC continues to recommend that anyone who has not yet gotten a flu vaccine this season should get vaccinated now. It takes approximately two weeks for the protection provided by vaccination to begin.

Although 480,000 Rhode Islanders were vaccinated last year, RIDOH, says that the flu sent 1,390 Rhode Islanders to the hospital and resulted in 60 deaths (compared to 1,216 hospitalizations and 33 deaths the previous year. The state saw more flu activity during the 2017-2018 flu season than during any flu season since the 2019-2010 season, when the state experienced the state experienced the H1N1 flu pandemic.

It’s Not too Late to Get Vaccination

In kicking off Rhode Island’s annual flu vaccination campaign last October, RIDOH Director Nicole Alexander-Scott, MD, MPH, said, “A flu shot is the single best way to protect yourself and the ones you love against the flu. When you get a flu shot you are not only protecting yourself, you are also protecting the people in your life by limiting the spread of the flu.”

So, if you have not been vaccinated, consider doing so. RIDOH recommends that children older than 6 months of age should be vaccinated against the flu. Others should, too., including health care workers, pregnant women, people over age 50, nursing facility residents and persons with chronic conditions (specifically heart, lung, or kidney disease, diabetes, asthma, anemia, blood disorders, or weakened immune systems).

It’s easily to quickly get a flu shot because of its availability at doctors’ offices and pharmacies throughout Rhode Island.

In addition to getting a flu shot, here are a few simple tips that can help prevent you from getting the flu.

Wash your hands thoroughly throughout the day, using warm water and soap. If you do not have soap and water, use an alcohol-based hand gel.

According to the CDC, the flu can spread to others up to about 6 feet away, by droplets made when a person cough, sneezes or talks. So, reduce spreading the flu, just by coughing or sneezing into your elbow or into a tissue.

Avoid touching your eyes, nose, or month because germs spread this way.

Get a good night’s sleep, be physically active and look for ways to manage your stress. Also, drink plenty of fluids, and eat nutritious food.

Keep surfaces wiped down, especially bedside tables, surfaces in the bathroom, and toys for children, by wiping them down with a household disinfectant.

Expanding Vaccinations Initiative Will Save State Money

Published in Pawtucket Times on January 5, 2004

During last year’s legislative session, the Ocean State Adult Immunization Coalition (OSAIC) approached the Rhode Island General Assembly for funding to promote the group’s efforts to get the word out about the importance of Rhode Island seniors getting influenza and pneumococcal vaccinations.

OSAIC’s message was quite simple – “Avoid a Hospital Stay: Get Your Flu Shot Now!”

The Providence-based nonprofit, a coalition of 40 agencies including hospitals, nursing facilities, vaccine manufacturers, medical societies, managed care groups, the R.I. Department of Health, the R.I. Health Care Association, and Blue Cross Blue Shield of R.I., call vaccinations a cost-effective way to prevent these unnecessary hospitalizations and deaths.

According OSAIC, pneumonia and influenza deaths together are considered the  sixth-leading cause of death in the nation. Since 1999, when this initiative began, there have been more than 300 deaths and 6,800 hospitalizations that were attributed to influenza and pneumococcal diseases in the Ocean State.

OSAIC stated that the cost of a flu shot is $ 15 and a pneumonia shot is $ 30.

On the other hand, the average length of stay for an older person with influenza is five days, costing $ 12,000. Treatment in a hospital for pneumonia lasts six days and costs $ 12,000l

At the conclusion of last year’s General Assembly session, lawmakers allocated $ 50,000 to OSAIC to push its many immunization initiatives. Charles Harris, owner of Harris Health Centers and an OSAIC executive board member, noted last year’s funding enabled his group to work closely with providers to create a system to identify vaccine recipients.

“We also were able to assist the state’s Health Department to expand the statewide vaccine record system,” he said.

OSAIC also worked with managed care providers to assist them in informing their beneficiaries through newsletters and reminders about the many benefits of flue and pneumonia vaccinates,” Harris added.

Furthermore, Harris said OSAIC reached out to the state’s media outlets to educate Ocean State seniors as to the importance of vaccine shots and the locations where they could get those shots. Meanwhile, an outreach program, utilizing both providers and pharmacists, also encouraged older Rhode Islanders to get their shots.

To get the  facts out, OSAIC senior volunteers even managed the nonprofit’s group’s flue hot line.

“Last year’s funding appropriation has even allowed us to begin our work this spring to urge seniors to get their pneumonia vaccines,” Harris noted.

“It also enabled OSAIC to bring its message into the state’s nursing facilities. Most nursing facility residents or staff who requested a shot got one, even with the flue vaccine shortage,” he said.

OSAIC is now posed to ratchet up its efforts to protect more of the state’s seniors. Look for the nonprofit group to push for making vaccinations a standard of care, Harris told All About Seniors.

“Rhode Island’s age 65 and over uninsured should receive these inoculations either free or at a nominal cost,” Harris said.

Senate Finance Committee Chair Stephen D. Alves, and Rep. Stephen M. Constantino (D-Providence), who serves as vice chair of the House Finance Committee, were key in getting OSAIC’s $ 50,000 funding allocation last year.

When the 2004 legislative session kicks off this columnist hopes that Sen. Alves and Rep. Costantino will again bring their passion for this preventative care issue to their respective committees and to the House and Senate floors during budget debates.

Even with a huge budget deficient looming, Gov. Don Carcieri and state lawmakers must see that preventative medicine is a worthy cost containment approach for reining in skyrocketing health care costs. Even with state dollars allocated up front, the savings will be ultimately realized down the road.

If Gov. Carcieri and state lawmakers choose to act “penny-wise” but pound-foolish” Rhode Islanders taxpayers will ultimately become the losers in the upcoming legislative session.

Lawmakers to Consider Funding for Vaccine Immunizations for Seniors

Published in Pawtucket Times on May 12, 2003

Even with a state budget deficit looming, sometimes putting a little money into a statewide initiative can ultimately save big dollars.  It’s just the right thing to do.

For the second year, the Ocean State Adult Immunization Coalition (OSAIC) has approached the Rhode Island General Assembly for funding to promote the group’s efforts to get the word out about the importance of Rhode Island seniors  getting influenza and pneumococcal vaccinations.

OSAIC’s message is quite simple: “Avoid a Hospital Stay: Get Your Flu Shot Now!”

According to OSAIC, pneumonia and influenza deaths together are considered the six-leading cause of death in the nation.

Since 1999, there have been 300 deaths and 6,800 hospitalizations that were attributed to influenza and pneumococcal disease in the Ocean State.

OSAIC said vaccinations are a cost-effective way to prevent these unnecessary hospitalizations and deaths.

OSAIC, a coalition of 40 agencies, including hospitals, nursing facilities, vaccine manufacturers, medical societies, managed care groups, the Rhode Island Department of Health, Rhode Island Quality Partners, the Visiting Nurses Association, and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Rhode Island, call on Gov. Don Carcieri and lawmakers to see the big picture – preventative medicine care can ultimately save tax dollars.

Anne Marie Beadsworth, OSAIC’s chair, said the cost of a flu shot is $ 15 and a pneumonia shot is $ 30.

On the other hand, she added that the average length of stay for an older person with influenza is five days, costing $ 12,000.

Since OSAIC was established in 1997, Beadsworth has seen a steady progress in the coalition’s efforts to get more older Rhode Islanders immunized to prevent the influenza and pneumonia.

“The immunization coverage rates for those age 65 and over has increased by eight precent (from 67 percent to 75 percent) for influenza vaccine and 24 percent (from 43 percent to 67 percent) for pneumococcal vaccine,” she noted.

Beadsworth said OSAIC is working to reach the Healthy People 2010 goal of a 90 percent immunization rate for influenza and pneumococcal  for people age 65 and over.

“Through promotional efforts in five languages in 2002, more than 350 flu clinics were conducted throughout Rhode Island with the guarantee that any person age 65 and older, regardless of insurance status, could get a flu shot without any out-of-pocket expenses,” she said.

Furthermore, OSAIC’s gains have propelled the Rhode Island-based initiative into top 10 standings in the United States, says Beadsworth.

“We rank number seven for both flu and pneumococcal vaccination rates,” she added.

Beadsworth said that during last year’s legislative session, OSAIC’s efforts for the state funding fizzled because of state funding fizzled because of state budget cuts. The coalition was just not effective in getting its message out to lawmakers, she added.

During this year’s legislative session, OSAIC is pushing for $ 103,169 in new funding in Fiscal Year 2003-2004 to expand the coalition’s educational outreach efforts and to hire a part-time staffer to oversee its ongoing programs to improve the state’s immunization rates.

Currently, OSAIC is a volunteer-driven organization with its $ 50,000 working budget coming from member organizations and from the community.

It seems things may be different this year at the Rhode Island General Assembly. Support among lawmakers is growing for OSAIC’s ongoing preventative medicine initiatives.

“Quite a few advocates are coming to the Senate asking for funding,” said Sen. Stephen D. Alves (D-West Warwick), who said there is now growing support for OSAIC’s funding request.

Alves, who serves as chair in the Senate Finance Committee, told All About Seniors the funding request will be brought up during the chamber’s budget debates.

“Everyday, we talk about preventative medicine – funding this program is a step in the right direction,” said Alves.

Rep. Steven M. Costantino (D-Providence), who sits on the House Finance Committee, told me he sees the value of OSAIC’s efforts, too, and plans to call for funding OSAIC’s initiative during House budget deliberations.

Health Director Patricia A. Nolan also sees the positive benefits of OSAIC’s prevention campaign.

“Adults need their shots, too – especially people aged 50 and older or people with chronic health conditions. Vaccinations are one of the easiest and most effective ways to stay healthy,” she says.

As state revenue estimators meet to determine the breath and scope of the state’s budget deficit, Gov. Carcieri’s staff continue their ‘Big Audit” to identify ways to save taxpayer dollars.

When the dust settles, even with a projected budget deficit, it may be time for the governor and the General Assembly to view preventative medicine as a worthy cost containment approach for reining in skyrocketing health care costs. Even though state dollars have to be allocated up front, large savings might be realized down the road.

As the state’s final budget is being crated, we must not be “penny wise but pound foolish” when determining what bills live or die in the 2004 legislation hopper. Taxpayers will ultimately lose if this happens.