NEWS & ALERTS
Take a look at the latest
newsletter by the Salina Nutrition and Physical Activity Coalition!
Are you thinking about New Year's resolutions?
Tip: Make small simple changes that can add up to a
healthier lifestyle for good: Check out the
Top Ten
REALISTIC Resolutions!
FLU SHOTS! It's still not too late!
Everyone 6 months of age and older is strongly encouraged to get a flu
shot this year. Seasonal flu vaccine is important because it protects
against three types of flu likely to circulate this flu season.
NOW AVAILABLE AT THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT CLINIC (125 W.
Elm) during regular clinic hours:
Monday 8:00am-3:30pm
Tuesday 8:00am-3:30pm
Wednesday 8:00am-5:30pm
Friday 8:00am-12:30pm
NO APPOINTMENT NEEDED.
Closed Thursdays, Saturdays, and Sundays; and major holidays.
*$22 fee is payable at time of injection -
Receipts will be available.
*Persons with the following health
plans, who bring their insurance cards, may be covered:
Blue Cross/Blue Shield; Medicare Part B; Medicaid; Children’s Mercy,
Unicare,
Private Medicare Advantage Plan C (ex: Humana Gold, Secure Horizons,
Pyramid Today’s Options,
Advantra Freedom, etc.)
Other methods of payment are:
Personal check Debit cards MasterCard Visa.
Please call 785-826-6602 if you have
questions about financial matters.
Fill out and bring to the Clinic:
Download consent forms for adults
here!
In Spanish
here!
Read these before you sign your consent:
English Vaccine Information Sheet - shot
Spanish Vaccine Information Sheet - shot
A few things
you can do to protect yourself against getting or spreading germs
include:
1) Good
handwashing! Use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer (at least 60-90%
alcohol) if handwashing facilities are not available. Then wash hands
later.
2) Keep your
hands away from your eyes, nose, and mouth.
3) Cover your
nose and mouth when you cough or sneeze. Use a tissue, and throw it
away. Or cover the cough or sneeze with your arm (rather than with your
hands), if necessary. Wash your hands afterwards.
4) Stay home
when you are ill, and encourage others to do the same. Do not go to
work, and do not send your children to school or day care when they are
ill. Employers and schools should encourage ill persons to stay home
until fever–free for at least 24 hours (without fever-reducing
medicines), or until symptoms subside, whichever is LONGER.
5) Practice
overall good health habits. Get enough sleep, eat right, drink plenty of
water, exercise regularly, and do not smoke.
6) Get a flu
shot every year.
For more
information, contact the Salina-Saline County Health Department Clinic
at 826-6602
I'm ready to quit smoking. What should I do?
You can call the toll-free Kansas Tobacco Quitline at
1-800-QUIT-NOW. If you want to quit smoking, you will make a
telephone appointment with a Trained Quit Counselor. You will get a
total of 5 telephone counseling appointments (10 if you are pregnant),
and extra call-in telephone counseling sessions to fight urges.
The Quitline is answered in English and Spanish by trained stop-smoking
specialists 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and it's FREE! A trained
quit counselor will help you make a plan to quit smoking for good!
Quitline has a new interactive
computer website
www.QuitNow.net/Kansas - all for free! Web
Coach offers cessation counseling by live chat and e-mail. You
will also have access to a private, online community where you can
complete activities, watch videos, and join discussions with others. A
quit coach will help you to create your plan to quit tobacco use, find
strategies to fight cravings, and keep you on track to becoming tobacco
free! Web Coach can be used alone or in addition to the Quitline phone
support.
I've heard about MRSA. What is it?
CA-MRSA stands for Community Acquired
Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus Aureus. It is a long and
scary name for what usually is a skin infection that is resistant to
certain antibiotics. If you think you have a
MRSA infection, it is important to see your doctor, who will culture the
sore, and probably give you special antibiotics if needed.
Always cover any open sores or cuts that you have,
and contain the drainage with clean bandages until they are healed.
Avoid contact with other peoples' wounds or bandages. Avoid
sharing personal items like towels, razors, and athletic equipment. As
always, WASH YOUR HANDS!! if handwashing facilities are not available,
use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer (at least 60% alcohol), then wash
your hands as soon as you have access to soap and water.
click here for MRSA
information
What's all the talk about bedbugs?
Bedbugs are masking a comeback in the U.S. and other
developed countries. They feed on your blood during the night, and leave
bite marks. They are nuisances, but there is no evidence that they can
transmit diseases to humans. They don't care if their environment is
clean or dirty. All they need is a warm host, and a place to hide.
They don't usually stay on humans, but can "hitchhike" on clothes or
luggage that are close to the infected item (usually a mattress). They
are very difficult to get rid of, so it is a good idea to get
professional help from a trained exterminator.
Learn
more about bedbugs
How can I tell if my hotel room has bedbugs?
Who do I call if my hotel room has bedbugs?
The Kansas Department of Agriculture is responsible for inspecting
Kansas hotels, motels, and other lodging facilities. You can
contact them at 785-296-7430 or 785-296-5600, or on their website at
www.ksda.gov
What is scabies, and how do you treat that?
Scabies is an infestation of the skin by a
microscopic parasite (the human itch mite), which burrows into the upper
layer of the skin where it lives and lays its eggs. The most common
symptoms of scabies are intense itching and a pimple-like skin rash. The
scabies mite usually is spread by direct, prolonged, skin-to-skin
contact with a person who has scabies.
Scabies occurs worldwide and affects people
of all races and social classes. Scabies can spread rapidly
under crowded conditions where close body contact is frequent.
Institutions such as nursing homes, extended-care facilities,
and prisons are often sites of scabies outbreaks.
You can find more information on the CDC
website
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