November 2006

In this Issue: Healthcare Feature | Partner Spotlight | Calendar | Welcome New Partners | In the News | Interesting Information

One Gift you Don’t Want to Get this Holiday Season: How to Prepare for the Flu

By Kristine Yahn, RN
Californians for Patient Care

It’s back! Flu season – just talking about it can make people want to run for cover. Every year about five to 20 percent of the nation catches the flu. Many more catch what they call the flu, but really isn’t. Influenza can make even healthy adults sick for seven to 14 days. Flu and other viral illnesses account for 70 million sick days each year costing billions of dollars annually.

So how can you avoid influenza and other troublesome viruses? Locking yourself in your home between the months of late December to early March is not the answer. However, being able to identify the flu and actively taking steps to prevent passing the virus to others can lead to a happier winter season for everyone. Read more...

Holiday Goodwill -- Care to Share?

The end of the year is fast approaching and we want to highlight the wonderful work CPAT partners have done this year for their local communities. If you would like to share information about your organization's charitable work in 2006, please send a brief description (less than 150 words) to Dorothy Johnson at dorothy@perrycom.com by November 20th. Remember to include your name, the organization that you represent and the charitable organization that you have worked with. If you have any photos, we would love to place them on our Web site as well. We look forward to sharing your acts of goodwill with our CPAT network!

American Diabetes Association - Sacramento/Sierra Region

Every November, the American Diabetes Association encourages the public to learn more about diabetes and the risks associated with the disease during their annual “American Diabetes Month.”

Mission:
To prevent and cure diabetes and to improve the lives of all people affected by diabetes.

About:
Founded in 1940, the ADA is the nation's leading nonprofit health organization providing diabetes research, information and advocacy. The ADA funds research, publishes scientific findings, provides information and other services to people with diabetes, their families, health professionals and the public. The ADA is also actively involved in advocating for scientific research and for the rights of people with diabetes.

Click here to learn more about the American Diabetes Association, Sacramento/Sierra Region.

Please join CPAT for a complimentary luncheon and opportunity to learn about the federal Deficit Reduction Act in relation to health care in California

Please note this program represents a change in our previously scheduled November event as we had an opportunity to share information about this important matter. We hope you will join us for our previously scheduled health care roundtable discussion, taking place in January 2007.

Wednesday, November 29
11:30 a.m. - 1:30 p.m.
CSAC Conference Center
1020 11th Street, 2nd Floor (between K and J Streets)
Sacramento, CA
RSVP to Dorothy at (916) 658-0144 x 196
or e-mail: dorothy@perrycom.com

Thursday, November 30
12 noon - 2 p.m.
The Palm Restaurant
1100 South Flower Street
Los Angeles, CA
RSVP to: Andrea at (323) 466-3445 x 240
or e-mail: andrea_s@cerrell.com

New Partners

• Agency for Hearing
• A.M. Home Health Services, Inc.
• Asian & Pacific Islander Older Adult Task Force (APIOATF)
• California Black Chamber of Commerce Foundation
• California State Department of Managed Health Care, HMO Help Center
• El Centro Chamber of Commerce & Visitors Bureau
• FashionablyFit
• Global Empowerment Ministries
• Hollywood Chamber of Commerce
• Santa Barbara Hispanic Chamber of Commerce
• Santee Chamber of Commerce
• Share Ourselves Free Medical & Dental Clinic
• St. Brigid’s AIDS Ministry

Plus 12 individual partners

The Flu Goes to Work
MSN.Com
October 10, 2006
By Rich Maloof

Stay healthy or stay at home -- Nearly every adult in America has had a bout with the flu. And once you get knocked down by influenza, you're flat on your back. Click here for the full article.

Health officials urge flu shots for everyone
Whittier Daily News
October 10, 2006
By Araceli Esparza

Area hospital and clinic officials are also gearing up for the start of the flu-shot season, reporting the good news that there will be plenty of vaccine on hand this year. Click here for the full article.

Protection is in your hands
USA Today
September 25, 2006
By Anita Manning

Colds and flu are an ugly fact of life, common maladies of the winter months when people are stuck inside sharing breathing space and schools become large petri dishes teeming with viruses. Click here for the full article.

Real Influenza is not like a Cold
USA Today
September 24, 2006
By Anita Manning

Doctors say if it's flu — real influenza, not just what everyone calls "the flu" — you'll know it. Click here for the full article.

Why Don’t We Do It In Our Sleeves?
By OtoRhinoLounsburgology Productions

This short video takes a helpful and humorous approach to encourage proper sneezing and coughing techniques to prevent the spread of colds and the flu.
Click here to watch it.

• Most adults suffer between two and three colds each year, while children can have between four and eight. (1)

• The flu accounts for approximately 70 million missed workdays in the United States each year. (2)

• The indirect costs of the flu ranges from $3 billion to $12 billion annually, and includes lowered productivity due to missed school and workdays. (2)

• Colds can occur throughout the year. Flu season generally runs from late fall through early spring. (3)

• The “stomach flu” is caused by a virus that is unrelated to the influenza virus. (3)

• You can’t catch the flu from the flu shot. The flu vaccine is made from an inactivated virus. Some people may be sore at the spot where the vaccination was injected, and in a few cases, may develop a fever, muscle aches, and feel unwell for a day or two. (4)

• In the last 100 years, there have been three flu pandemics: 1918, 1957, and 1968. (5)

1. Ipsos RSL March 1999 2. Lemsip NOP survey 1997 3. Body Story by Dr. David Williams, Channel 4 books, (p87-109)
2. CNNmoney.com. Flu-related costs, lower worker productivity bug businesses. Oct. 16, 2004. Available at: http://money.cnn.com/2003/10/16/news/companies/flu_impact
3. Kaiser Permante. Cold and Flu: What’s the Difference? Available at: www.kp.org.
4. American Lung Association, Cold and Flu Guidelines: Myths and Facts. Available at: http://www.lungusa.org/site/pp.asp?c=dvLUK9O0E&b=35869
5. State of California Health and Human Services Agency. Division of Communicable Diseases. Influenza. Available at: http://www.dhs.ca.gov/dcdc/disb/pdf/Influenza%208-02.pdf

CA Access News welcomes contributions from our partners. Please contact us if you have suggestions for future events and stories by calling CPAT at (916) 658-0144, Attn: Janet.

925 L Street, Suite 1200
Sacramento, CA 95814
www.caaccess.org

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