PACAF officials address H1N1 as cold, flu season begins

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. LuCelia Ball
  • Pacific Air Forces Public Affairs
HICKAM AIR FORCE BASE, Hawaii (AFNS) --  The cold and flu season has begun including the risk of the H1N1 influenza virus, and officials from military treatment facilities at Pacific Air Forces installations are currently working to ensure that information and vaccinations are available to both military members and their dependents.

"We are seeing the H1N1 virus throughout the PACAF area of responsibility," said Lt. Col. David Duque, of the PACAF Public Heath Office.

While the seasonal influenza vaccine has been available for a number of weeks, the anticipated H1N1 vaccine is expected to be arriving a bit later than first anticipated.

"We are ahead of our current goals with the seasonal flu vaccine," Colonel Duque said. "Our goal was to have all military personnel in PACAF vaccinated by Dec. 1. We are currently doing well with meeting our goal. We are already at more than 80 percent vaccinated and the MTFs have started to vaccinate dependents as well. The H1N1 vaccine arrival differs depending on installation location, but realistically, we are anticipating that the vaccines will be available by November."

Vaccines for active-duty personnel have been ordered through the Department of Defense stockpile for PACAF, in which MTFs coordinated with the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs and the appropriate state public health departments for vaccines purchased through the Department of Health and Human Services.

Dependent vaccine supplies are handled differently. MTFs in Japan and South Korea also order through the DOD stockpile, while installations in Hawaii, Alaska and Guam work through their state or territory public health departments.

For adults, the H1N1 vaccine will be one dose of the vaccine, while dependents under 10 years of age will receive two doses.

On June 11, 2009, the World Health Organization indicated that a pandemic of H1N1 influenza was underway, with the potential to infect people worldwide. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the H1N1 virus is contagious, passing from person to person through coughing, sneezing, or an uninfected person touching something with the flu virus on it and then touching his mouth or nose. People with infections from seasonal or H1N1 flu may be able to infect others from one day before getting sick to five to seven days after.

The symptoms of H1N1 are similar to seasonal flu and include fever, cough, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, body aches, headache, chills and fatigue. Some people may experience vomiting or diarrhea.

"We tracked the virus during the first 60 days or so after this virus showed up in the AOR," Colonel Duque said. "We are no longer testing. It's too widespread now and most people who have a flu-like illness have been confirmed as having the H1N1 virus. We are now only testing cases with serious or unusual symptoms. Most of these cases end up with hospitalizations."

Illnesses from H1N1 have ranged from mild to severe. According to the Center for Disease Control, some people who have been sick have recovered without medical treatment, hospitalization and deaths from infections with this virus have occurred.

Certain people are considered "high-risk" of serious complications during flu season. These can include people 65 years and older, children younger than 5 years old, pregnant women and people of any age with chronic medical conditions. In these instances, people who exhibit flu-like symptoms should seek medical treatment.

In addition to receiving the vaccines, everyday measures for flu prevention include hand washing with soap and water, avoidance of touching eyes, mouth or nose and avoiding close contact with sick people. Stay at home when sick; good cough etiquette and hand washing hygiene are key to preventing the spread of influenza.

"Use of N95 respirators or disposable facemasks generally is not recommended for workers in non-healthcare occupational settings for general work activities, said Lt. Col. Kai-Wood Ma, the 15th Medical Group chief of aerospace medicine. "However, disposable facemasks can be used for ill persons to minimize the spread of the disease. "

"Sometimes our grandmothers were entirely correct -- if a person is feeling ill, the best thing is to stay home, get rest and drink plenty of fluids," Colonel Duque said.