ACEP has resource to prepare for H1N1
ACEP has resource to prepare for H1N1
Are you taking steps to prepare for a surge in H1N1 flu cases that might arrive as early as September? Use a free new resource, a National Strategic Plan for Emergency Department Management of Outbreaks of Novel H1N1 Influenza, developed by the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP), the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response, and the Emergency Care Coordination Center. (Editor's note: To obtain a copy of the guidance, go to www.acep.org. Click on "National Strategic Plan for ED Management of H1N1 Influenza Outbreaks." Also, a Patient Care Checklist for H1N1 developed by the World Health Organization can be downloaded at www.who.int/patientsafety/activities/ah1n1_checklist/en.)
"Every ED should prepare for the possibility of an H1N1, or other, epidemic. Action now will save lives in an epidemic," says Nicholas Jouriles, MD, FACEP, ACEP's president and an attending physician at the Department of Emergency Medicine at Akron (OH) General Medical Center. "Develop a plan for when your primary care providers send all their flu patients to the ED. Start planning now."
Samantha Vining, RN, MS, clinical nurse specialist for the ED at Albany (NY) Medical Center, says, "We are taking H1N1 very seriously, as we do with all infectious diseases. We follow the CDC [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] recommendations very closely and are being especially vigilant about both respiratory precautions and respiratory etiquette." The ED is doing the following to prepare:
— Triage staff are updated regularly on H1N1.
— Patients are questioned through a glass window regarding possible symptoms before they enter the ED. They are then instructed to don a mask if applicable before walking through the doors into triage.
— "Etiquette bags" containing tissues and masks are available for visitors throughout the department.
This spring, ED nurses at The Hospital of Central Connecticut in New Britain at treated large numbers of patients worried they had H1N1. "The staff have been educated as to how to deal with a suspected H1N1 patient. If they are very ill, febrile, extremely weak, or have a cough, etc., they are given a mask as soon as they are initially evaluated and they are placed in an isolation room," says Nancy Bennett, RN, MSN, ED educator. "We have masks, gloves, and face shields everywhere."
Bennett says the ED saw many documented cases of H1N1, including one death. "I think the nurses are now a little more comfortable with dealing with a patient complaining of influenza-like illness," she says. "If we do get hit worse in the fall, I think we'll be prepared and best know how to deal with it."
Sources
For more information on preparing for an H1N1 epidemic, contact:
- Nancy Bennett, RN, MSN, Educator, Emergency Department, The Hospital of Central Connecticut, New Britain. Phone: (860) 224-5900, ext. 2664. Fax: (860) 224-5774. E-mail: [email protected].
- Samantha Vining, RN, MS, Clinical Nurse Specialist, Emergency Department, Albany (NY) Medical Center. Phone: (518) 262-4550. E-mail: [email protected].
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