In 2005, people were frightened to go to poultry markets for fears of catching Avian Flu, or H1N3, and many precautionary measures were taken to eradicate that virus. With much struggle, we were finally successful. The same sort of preventative measures need to be taken with H1N1. This being a viral disease, in can be transmitted from one person to the next almost instantly. The consumption of pork should be minimized or completely stopped for the time being, in order to aid the prevention of the virus spreading.
However, this is also an airborne, contagious virus, so the government should urge medical and pharmaceutical companies to produce a preventative vaccine. Everyone in the country must be inoculated no matter what the side effect are, as long as we eradicate the virus and stop it spreading. Schools should educate and inform children of the dangers of avoiding the use of preventative measures and should give special classes on cleanliness/hygiene and how to dispose correctly of used tissues, for example. These classes should be especially targeted towards children below the age of twelve, as they are more susceptible to the virus than adolescents.
As individuals, we all have a duty to one another. We must be aware of the symptoms of this virus, which are a high temperature, a mucus-filled cough, drooping eyelids, weakness up to the point of fatigue, and sometimes diarrhea and/or vomiting. If we spot a fellow classmate or anyone in a public area such as a mall or shopping market demonstrating any of these symptoms, we must inform the school nurse or ask for assistance in the public area immediately and without the slightest delay. This should not be neglected at all. These people deserve the opportunity for treatment as soon as possible. In school, we should ask our senior staff members to make sure there are hand sanitizers available in every corridor and soap in all the bathrooms, so that we may have clean hands at all times. Extra care should be taken to maintain the sanitation and hygiene of the school bathrooms. Also, everyone must keep a bag of antiseptic wipes in their backpack for times when hand sanitizer is unavailable. This will dramatically reduce the risk on infection and will greatly enhance the safety of the pupils and staff alike.
This may seem like a lot of effort but to protect our health, and possibly our lives, these measures are extremely essential. Together, we will be able to prevent, or at least minimize, the spread of the H1N1 virus, so that we may live our lives healthily, and without fear.
