McTriage: Hospitals use drive-thrus for swine flu

[sybarite]

By MARILYNN MARCHIONE, AP Medical Writer Marilynn Marchione, Ap Medical Writer – Tue Sep 29, 2:36 pm ET
Fast-food places have them. Banks and pharmacies do, too. Now hospitals are opening drive-thrus and drive-up tent clinics to screen and treat a swelling tide of swine flu patients.

Call it McTriage. And yes, you can get Tamiflu with that — if you're sick enough to need it. Most people aren't.

The idea behind these efforts is to keep coughing, feverish people out of regular emergency rooms, where they can infect heart attack victims and other very sick patients. The need has soared in recent weeks as flu has spread among schoolchildren before vaccine is available.

In Austin, Texas, Dell Children's Medical Center had nearly 400 ER visits on Sunday alone, mostly kids with swine flu. Dozens were diverted to two tents outside, and there are plans to add a third.

In Memphis, Tenn., Le Bonheur (pronounced luh-BAHN-uhr) Children's Hospital has had more than 5,500 kids with flu-like illness seek emergency care since Aug. 1. The hospital set up tents outside its ER on Sept. 11 and already has treated more than 900 cases in them.

Hope and Billy Howard took their 3-year-old daughter, Emma Smith, to one on Sunday. The little girl had a fever that would not break with over-the-counter medicine, complained of belly pain and refused to eat, and her parents could not reach her pediatrician.

"I didn't know what to give her, and I didn't want to take any chances," her mother said. At the tent ER, "we were in and out in 15 minutes."

Entire families who are sick have shown up at Bayne-Jones Army Community Hospital in Fort Polk, La., near the Texas state line.

"They just drive up in their pajamas," said Henry Johnson, a physician's assistant who helped start a tent system there. People pull up, park and go through three tents, where they undergo an exam that includes having their temperature taken. They are usually sent home, with prescriptions if needed.
________________________
I'm on the emergency call list for H1N1. I think this is a good idea in warmer states but in northern states it will not work. What are your views on ER tents for H1N1???

[squirt]

Originally Posted by sybarite

Hope and Billy Howard took their 3-year-old daughter, Emma Smith, to one on Sunday. The little girl had a fever that would not break with over-the-counter medicine, complained of belly pain and refused to eat, and her parents could not reach her pediatrician.

these are the symptoms my granddaughter had, she was taken to the emergency room where they told my daughter that it would cost $325 up front to test her for swine flu, insurance not accepted ... lol and she's got good medical insurance coverage! I couldn't believe it when my daughter told me lol made me feel like the whole thing is all about money, my granddaughter is better now and back at school

[stevent222]

Sad to hear that Squirt but am happy granddaughter is better now.

I think its a grand idea sybarite and would support it also very good for the millions of people that do not have insurance cause as Squirt state that is what it comes down to is the drug cartels. And the doctor schools are run by them so what does that mean, teach the doctor to write a drug for the infected person along with taking an educated guess on what they are suffering from.

Triage has always been the first very important step in any E.R.

[sybarite]

Saying They Should Be Given A Choice, Employees Rally In Albany, Around State, Chant "No Forced Shots!"
Protesters Hold Signs That Read: "The State Doesn't Own My Body'" Reporting
Jennifer McLogan STONY BROOK, N.Y. (CBS)

They're upset over an ultimatum from the health department.
Workers are being told to either get the swine flu vaccine or lose their jobs.
New York is the first state in the country to mandate flu vaccinations for its health care workers. The first doses of swine flu vaccine will be available beginning next week. Much of it is reserved for state health care workers, but there is growing opposition to required innoculations.
Health care workers in Hauppauge screamed "No forced shots!" as they rallied Tuesday against the state regulation requiring them to roll up their sleeves.
"I don't even tend to the sick. I am in the nutrition field. They are telling me I must get the shot because I work in a health clinic setting," said Paula Small, a Women, Infants and Children health care worker.
Small said she will refuse, worried the vaccine is untested and unproven, leaving her vulnerable. In 1976, there were some deaths associated with a swine flu vaccination.
Registered nurse Frank Mannino, 50, was also angry. He said the state regulation violates his personal freedom and civil rights.
____________________
I do not believe the government has the right to force anyone to get a shot regardless of their profession. The last time I got a flu shot I got sicker than a dog. I'm not getting a swine flu shot.

[hortysir]

Look on your left shoulder, Syb.
Chances are, if you're 35 or older, the government has ALREADY forced you to get a shot. And they have been doing that to children ever since then.
All school-age children are required to have their shot records up to date.
If you plan on travelling to some countries, you're required to have a few shots.
Heck, even our dogs are required to have certain shots.
I'm against big government as much (or more) than the next guy, but to get upset because the government wants to protect it's citizenry through the Constitution
(Horty's bringing that thing up again!!) is too little too late....
It's right there in the preamble: "promote the general Welfare"

[sybarite]

Originally Posted by hortysir

Look on your left shoulder, Syb.
Chances are, if you're 35 or older, the government has ALREADY forced you to get a shot. And they have been doing that to children ever since then.
All school-age children are required to have their shot records up to date.
If you plan on travelling to some countries, you're required to have a few shots.
Heck, even our dogs are required to have certain shots.
I'm against big government as much (or more) than the next guy, but to get upset because the government wants to protect it's citizenry through the Constitution
(Horty's bringing that thing up again!!) is too little too late....
It's right there in the preamble: "promote the general Welfare"

Anyone has the right to refuse medication and/or treatment of any kind. It's in the patients/residents bill of rights. If a parent refuses, they must sign a paper but they cannot be forced to have their child inoculated. I have had two parents who have refused to have certain inoculations given to their children. They sign a refusal slip and I send it in to the state. I do believe it's wise to have certain inoculations, however, IMHO there is a big difference between a polio shot and a flu shot.

[hortysir]

if this turns into something more widespread than polio ever was, would you still say that?

[sybarite]

Originally Posted by hortysir

if this turns into something more widespread than polio ever was, would you still say that?

englishnews@chosun.com / Sep. 17, 2009 11:35 KST

Which is more dangerous -- the new H1N1 strain of flu or seasonal flu? Although the H1N1 flu scare is growing, experts say the fatality rates of the viruses are similar. So far, some 10,000 people have been infected with the H1N1 virus in Korea and eight have died, showing a fatality rate of 0.08 percent. This is lower than the global average of 0.1 to 0.2 percent, so Korea has actually been doing well in its war against the pandemic.

There is no concrete fatality rate for seasonal flu, but according to figures from the National Statistical Office, 701 people died of seasonal flu from 1998 to 2008, an average of 64 fatalities per year. Because there are no statistics on the number of H1N1 infections yet, its exact fatality rate is hard to determine, but experts believe it to be a similar level as that of seasonal flu.

Park Seung-chul, a professor at Samsung Medical Center, said, "Although the new H1N1 flu spreads faster than seasonal flu, its damage has been no greater than other strains when we look at the last four months since the outbreak."

Here's another link:Swine flu no worse than regular flu, Napolitano says - CNN.com

___________________

I think the initial frenzy and paranoia that struck the public when this first came out is dying down a little, but all people have to do is take the same precautions as the would any other flu season. Wash your hands frequently, eat well, get enough sleep, exercise, and keep your immune system healthy.

[hortysir]

Originally Posted by sybarite

Here's another link:Swine flu no worse than regular flu, Napolitano says - CNN.com

from your link:

In the United States, the CDC on Monday reported confirmed 279 cases across 36 states -- 60 more than were confirmed the day before. Several states, including New York and Massachusetts, confirmed dozens more cases Monday that were not immediately added to the CDC tally.


60 a day?


I'm really trying NOT to be an alarmist, but I'm not going to try to minimize it, either....
"an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure"

[sybarite]

Originally Posted by hortysir

from your link:

In the United States, the CDC on Monday reported confirmed 279 cases across 36 states -- 60 more than were confirmed the day before. Several states, including New York and Massachusetts, confirmed dozens more cases Monday that were not immediately added to the CDC tally.


60 a day?


I'm really trying NOT to be an alarmist, but I'm not going to try to minimize it, either....
"an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure"

An ounce of prevention is definitely a worth a pound of cure. How you want to prevent an illness, whether by taking good care of your body, flu shot, etc. should be your choice. You should not be forced by the government to have a certain choice made for you, especially something injected into your body that you don't want there!