In the healthcare setting professionals use many types of precautions including Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to protect themselves, their patients, and the public from infection. PPE includes gowns, gloves, respiratory masks and goggles. There is a proper technique to put on, remove, and dispose of PPE to further contain pathogens and prevent the spread of infection diseases. During this time of the Novel Coronavirus Pandemic when non medical professionals are wearing Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) such as masks and gloves on a daily basis, it is imperative that they know how to do it correctly in order to protect themselves and others. First of all, the gloves only protect the wearer. So if you are wearing gloves and not taking them off- and sanitizing, or preferably, washing your hands between customers and between transactions or interactions, the contaminants (germs) that are on the gloves are being transferred to surfaces and other people. In my personal and professional worlds I have seen people unknowingly contaminating surfaces without understanding how. I watched a loving caring person assist an adult relative with a disability in the rest room and she came out of the bathroom and touched cabinets and tabletops before taking her gloves off. She protected herself from germs, but did not protect everyone else. She did not do it on purpose. She was not trained. Another time I was in a deli and the worker wore gloves to handle food of a customer who was ahead of me. Then she rang up the order on the cash register. Then--!! she went back to the slicer to cut my deli order. No no no no no. I called her over and asked her to change her gloves. She was taken aback and defensive. I explained to her that she had just touched money and the countertop and now she was about to handle my food. I then quietly told her that I was a member of a local board of health and witnessed poor food handling practice which could be problematic for the customers and also for her employer who could be cited by the health dept. It was an uncomfortable conversation but it was necessary. (You can report these poor practices to your board of health in your town, but that is another conversation. Let's get back to the main point...). Imagine you are shopping in the supermarket today, during the COVID Pandemic. We are all required to wear masks to reduce or prevent the spread of the virus. We are not required to wear gloves but some do. (I wear them while sanitizing the handle of my cart and then remove them and throw them away properly. Then I carry sanitizer and sanitize my hands multiple times while I am shopping). If you do wear gloves, keep in mind, they are for your protection, and not for anyone else's protection. Anything you touch with those gloves are potentially contaminated with any germs that you came in contact with. There is a correct way to wear gloves, and a correct way to put them on and take them off so that you do not contaminate yourself while you are taking them off. Zufall Health, a health center in New Jersey shared this great video with step by step instructions on how to put on and remove gloves and face masks. It s worth watching. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HN-GSAe2pg4&feature=youtu.be Last Year I was asked by the Morris County New Jersey to participate in Author's Day 2020- a live event with local authors. One year later the day has come. Due to COVID-19, this event has been switched to a virtual event, like all other events and meetings.
Each author has a day on which they are featured on the library's Facebook page. Today, May 11th, is my day! The silver lining for me is that I can now invite everybody to attend by simply clicking a link and to check out my first book, "Get Fit to Go", and my current book, "Well? What are You Waiting For?" , and learn who my favorite authors and books are. I will be writing and talking about the reasons I wrote this book in upcoming posts- but the main message is that your health, our health--is ones own responsibility. Meanwhile, I invite you to visit my Author Page at the Morris County Public Library and to like and share the Morris County Library Facebook page. https://www.facebook.com/notes/morris-county-library-nj/morris-county-author-laura-oreilly-stanzilis/10157692768704753/ Yours in health, Laura Everyone feels stressed from time to time. But what is stress? How does it affect your health? And what can you do about it? Stress is how the brain and body respond to any demand. Every type of demand or stressor—such as exercise, work, school, major life changes, or traumatic events—can be stressful. Stress can affect your health. It is important to pay attention to how you deal with minor and major stress events so that you know when to seek help. Here are five things you should know about stress: 1. Stress affects everyone. Everyone feels stressed from time to time. Some people may cope with stress more effectively or recover from stressful events more quickly than others. There are different types of stress—all of which carry physical and mental health risks. A stressor may be a one time or short term occurrence, or it can be an occurrence that keeps happening over a long period of time. Examples of stress include:
2. Not all stress is bad. Stress can motivate people to prepare or perform, like when they need to take a test or interview for a new job. Stress can even be life-saving in some situations. In response to danger, your body prepares to face a threat or flee to safety. In these situations, your pulse quickens, you breathe faster, your muscles tense, your brain uses more oxygen and increases activity—all functions aimed at survival. 3. Long-term stress can harm your health. Health problems can occur if the stress response goes on for too long or becomes chronic, such as when the source of stress is constant, or if the response continues after the danger has subsided. With chronic stress, those same life-saving responses in your body can suppress immune, digestive, sleep, and reproductive systems, which may cause them to stop working normally. Different people may feel stress in different ways. For example, some people experience mainly digestive symptoms, while others may have headaches, sleeplessness, sadness, anger or irritability. People under chronic stress are prone to more frequent and severe viral infections, such as the flu or common cold. Routine stress may be the hardest type of stress to notice at first. Because the source of stress tends to be more constant than in cases of acute or traumatic stress, the body gets no clear signal to return to normal functioning. Over time, continued strain on your body from routine stress may contribute to serious health problems, such as heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, and other illnesses, as well as mental disorders like depression or anxiety. 4. There are ways to manage stress. The effects of stress tend to build up over time. Taking practical steps to manage your stress can reduce or prevent these effects. The following are some tips that may help you to cope with stress:
5. If you’re overwhelmed by stress, ask for help from a health professional. You should seek help right away if you have suicidal thoughts, are overwhelmed, feel you cannot cope, or are using drugs or alcohol to cope. Your doctor may be able to provide a recommendation. You can find resources to help you find a mental health provider by visiting Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAHMSA)-https://findtreatment.samhsa.gov/locator/about.html#.XrSppm5FxPY Local help is available through the Mental Health Association in New Jersey: https://www.njmentalhealthcares.org/ If you have a mental health emergency dial 911. |
Archives
November 2023
Archives
November 2023
Archives
November 2023
Categories
All
|