Home Opinion Editorials Fight, don't invite, swine flu risk

Fight, don't invite, swine flu risk

Written by Observer editorial reports November 12, 2009 03:44 pm

Of all the news stories we’ve seen lately, the one about swine flu parties beats all.

It seems that some people around the country are holding gatherings in which a person infected with swine flu is present. Believe it or not, the idea is to deliberately catch the flu. The logic is fuzzy, but apparently people think if they get sick in the first mild swine flu outbreak, they won’t get sick in a more severe second or third round.

There are many good, sound medical reasons not to go to one of these parties, the main one being that swine flu is a new virus and no one can predict its effects on individuals. Suffice it to say that it’s safer and saner to get a swine flu vaccination as soon as one comes available to you. Admittedly, that’s a bit of a problem here in Northeast Oregon, indeed all over the state at present. Vaccine is in short supply, so people in what are called “priority groups’’ are being vaccinated first.

That includes, as you may already know, people 6 months to 24 years, pregnant women, people caring for or living with infants, people 25 to 64 years with underlying medical conditions like asthma, immune deficiencies and diabetes, health care workers and frontline emergency and law enforcement workers.

The Center for Human Development, primary provider for swine flu vaccine in Union County, is dealing with supply problems as best it can, concentrating strictly on the priority groups.

CHD has already held a few clinics and will hold more as vaccine comes available. The agency is also working closely with OB-GYN and pediatric practitioners in an extra effort to make sure children and pregnant women are protected. Once CHD is sure that the high risk categories are covered, it will begin offering vaccinations for the general population, though that may take awhile.

For people with a tendency to hit the panic button, the advice is, don’t. There have been a couple of swine flu cases reported locally, and no deaths. Neither swine flu nor seasonal flu is running rampant here, and there is no public emergency. Grande Ronde Hospital reports its daily census is running about average for this time of year.

There are things folks can do to keep it that way. Common sense measures include avoiding people who are sick, covering the face when coughing or sneezing, and washing hands after a cough or sneeze. People who become ill with the flu should stay home.

It’s never a bad idea to get a seasonal flu shot, either. That can save a person a lot of grief.

Common sense measures don’t include going to a swine flu party. Spreading swine flu on purpose? How dumb can you get?