Subscribe
Community
Keeping it cool during pandemic hysteria
Our Opinion
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
|
| ||
|
E-Mail This Article
For the last week, we haven't been able to get away from it: the swine flu is everywhere. On the TV, on the radio, in the papers, even in letters from our children's school, we're hearing about the effects of this virus that somehow jumped from pigs to humans in Mexico.
From that initial contact, we've been learning a lesson in just how small our planet is. Everyone who gets a sniffle is now retracing his or her footsteps, scouring the last few days to make sure they didn't come into contact with someone who may have come into contact with someone who may have gone to Mexico. "Probable" cases have been popping up everywhere — even in Charles County — and schools in Maryland are closing for up to two weeks to stop this pandemic of the virus H1N1.
As of Tuesday, there were 403 confirmed cases of the illness in the U.S., and one person has died. There are four confirmed cases in Maryland, plus a few probable ones. Yet, schools have been shut down in response to the virus.
So, this virus has now interrupted our children's education, therefore our workplaces as parents scramble to find ways to care for their children who are out of school. People are walking around with masks on and eyeing anyone who looks remotely ill.
Yet, every year, we manage to get through flu season without closing down any schools. Millions of Americans end up with some form of a cold or flu every winter, and thousands of people die from it. Yet we continue on with life, with work and with education. We get stomach flu and unknowingly pass it around to people at work and school.
Calvert County students received a letter last week to take home to their parents, outlining what precautions the school is taking to prevent the virus' spread. Students and staff are washing their hands frequently and watching for flu symptoms.
The best defense we have against this pandemic is common sense, and so far Southern Maryland has shown it. If you feel like your immune system is not at 100 percent capacity, wear a mask. Wash your hands if you sneeze, and avoid touching your mouth and nose.
The Centers for Disease Control has a wealth of information on its Web site, www.cdc.gov, about avoiding the virus, and what to do if you think you may have it. If you're really sick, stay home and avoid spreading it to your co-workers, or even others on the bus or in restaurants.
Basically, do the same thing you always do when you have the flu.
