Advice on swine flu
If you are worried that you have swine flu symptoms, please do not come to the Emergency Department or visit your GP surgery.
Instead, you should contact the National Pandemic Flu Service, which can provide fast access to antivirals for people with pandemic swine flu symptoms.
The National Pandemic Flu Service is a dedicated website (www.direct.gov.uk/pandemicflu) and phoneline (0800 1 513 100) for people to check their symptoms and get a unique number which will give them access to antivirals if necessary. There is also a number to call if you simply require information on swine flu (0800 1 513 513).
People should contact their doctor direct rather than using the National Pandemic Flu Service if:
- they have a serious underlying illness
- they are pregnant
- they have a sick child under one year old
- their condition suddenly gets much worse
- their condition is still getting worse after 7 days (5 for a child)
If you are due to come into hospital and you have flu symptoms, please contact the department you are booked with to get advice about whether you should attend. It may be more appropriate for you to recover from the flu before you attend your appointment.
Swine flu symptoms
As swine flu spreads, it is important to be able to recognise its symptoms. People who have two of the following symptoms and a temperature of 38° C and above or feel hot may have swine flu.
The typical symptoms are:
- sudden fever (a high body temperature of 38C/100.4F or above), and
- sudden cough.
Other symptoms may include:
- headache
- tiredness
- chills
- aching muscles
- limb or joint pain
- diarrhoea or stomach upset
- sore throat
- runny nose
- sneezing
- loss of appetite
Please do not visit patients in the hospital if you have symptoms of flu
Further information
General information can be found online at:
NHS Direct: www.nhs.uk
Government website: www.direct.gov.uk
Information on swine flu in different languages can be found online at:
NHS Choices: http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Pandemic-flu/Pages/Otherlanguages.aspx
Patient information leaflet:
Click here to view Poole Hospital's patient information leaflet on swine flu
Reduce the risk of catching or spreading flu:
CATCH IT - Always carry tissues and use them to catch your cough or sneeze. Always cover your mouth when coughing or sneezing.
BIN IT - Germs can live for several hours on tissues. Dispose of your tissue as soon as possible.
KILL IT - Hands transfer germs to everything you touch. Dispose of dirty tissues promptly and carefully. Wash you hands frequently with soap and water to reduce the spread of germs. Clean hard surfaces (e.g. door handles) frequentlyusing a normal cleaning product.
Date: 4 August 2009