Prevention: Be an Assumption College Flu Fighter

• Practice good hand hygiene by washing your hands with soap and water, especially after coughing or sneezing. Alcohol-based hand cleaners also are effective.

• Practice respiratory etiquette by covering your mouth and nose with a tissue when you cough or sneeze. If you don’t have a tissue, cough or sneeze into your elbow or shoulder, not into your hands.  Avoid touching your eyes, nose, or mouth; germs are spread this way.

• Know the signs and symptoms of the flu. A fever is a temperature taken with a thermometer that is equal to or greater than 100 degrees Fahrenheit or 38 degrees Celsius. Look for possible signs of fever: if the person feels very warm, has a flushed appearance, or is sweating or shivering.

• Call Student Health Services – don’t just walk down to the clinic.  From your cell phone, call (508) 767-7329 or x7329 from an on-campus phone.  After 5:00 p.m. and on weekends, call the Department of Public Safety at (508) 767-7225 or x7225.

• Call your Professor and stay home! if you have flu or flu-like illness for at least 24 hours after you no longer have a fever (100 degrees Fahrenheit or 38 degrees Celsius) or signs of a fever (have chills, feel very warm, have a flushed appearance, or are sweating). This should be determined without the use of fever-reducing medications (any medicine that contains ibuprofen or acetaminophen).  Call your professor or Dean Knowlton and don’t go to class.
• Talk with your health care providers about whether you should be vaccinated for flu.