Australian Health Management Plan for Pandemic Influenza

C. What happens if I have influenza

C1. What to do if you think you have pandemic influenza

You should seek medical advice if you have a fever and any one of the following symptoms:

• difficulty breathing
• chills and shivering
• muscle aches and pains
• sore throat
• dry cough
• stuffy or runny nose
• extreme tiredness.

Note: since the symptoms of pandemic influenza cannot be known at this time, it is important that you keep up-to-date with advice on symptoms, as these may change.

Medical advice will be available from health department websites and hotlines, but you should seek medical attention preferably from a flu clinic or influenza service if you feel very unwell. Ambulance services may be stretched in the SUSTAIN phase of a pandemic and should only be used if necessary.

If sick, you should stay home from work or school until it is confirmed that you do not have pandemic influenza. If you are not confirmed to have pandemic influenza, but are still ill, stay home until you are well.

If you have influenza symptoms, wear a surgical mask or other appropriate covering for nose and mouth (advice about appropriate face covering will be provided at the time) in public or when near other household members.

If you are feeling unwell and need to seek medical attention, the best option is to attend a flu clinic or influenza service. If you cannot access a flu clinic, and need to seek medical attention from your GP, phone before visiting so that special arrangements can be made to ensure you are treated in an area away from other patients.

C2. What happens if you do have pandemic influenza

If you are diagnosed with pandemic influenza, you will be referred to as a case. Other household members will be considered contacts. All will need to stay at home for a period. Box 11 outlines some of the terms you may need to become familiar with in an influenza pandemic.

Box 11: What is the difference between: cases and contacts treatment and prophylaxis isolation and quarantine. During an influenza pandemic, if someone becomes ill with an influenza-like illness and they meet the case definition for pandemic influenza they will be referred to as a case. They may be offered antivirals as treatment. Cases will be isolated in the home, or in hospital if required. Someone who has come into close contact (e.g. household or other exposure) with a case will be referred to as a contact. They may be given antivirals to prevent infection; this is referred to as prophylaxis. Contacts will be quarantined in the home. It is important to remember that the antivirals provided for prophylaxis and for treatment may be different and you should always follow the advice provided by the health authorities.

If you do have pandemic influenza you will need to stay in isolation until you are no longer infectious (advice on duration will be provided at the time via hotlines/websites).

The measures that an infectious person can take to prevent transmission are outlined in Box 12.

Box 12: Measures that an infectious person can take to prevent transmission If sick: Stay at home, in isolation (if you need to seek medical care call ahead for advice). If provided with antiviral medication, ensure you complete the course as instructed. Respect and protect other people by: wearing a surgical mask when in the company of others maintaining good personal hygiene and cough etiquette. Advice will be provided at the time about when infected individuals are safe to return to normal activities and when these measures can be ceased.

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This information is current for 03 September, 2010
This information was issued on 05 December, 2008