Health News:
- Norovirus cases are rising quickly across the country. Wastewater concentrations have increased 69% since October. (NBC)
- Bird flu can survive at high temperatures that would kill human flu strains. (Science Daily)
- More cities are finding PFAS (“forever chemicals”) in their drinking water. (NPR)
- A third infant in Kentucky has died from whooping cough, as national cases are surging for the second year in a row. (CIDRAP)
- Experts say a top FDA official’s claim that COVID vaccines caused 10 kids’ deaths requires more evidence. (STAT)
- Utah’s measles outbreak has now surpassed 100 cases and is still growing quickly, with 8 new cases last week among students at a high school. (KSL)
- Measles cases are surging worldwide, making global elimination a “distant goal,” according to the WHO. (CNN)
- Ethiopia reported its first Marburg virus outbreak last week, 5 out of 10 confirmed cases have now died. (CIDRAP)
Best Question:
There’s norovirus going around the local high school. What can we do to prevent it from interrupting our business operations?
Noro is really picking up across the country. Since August, test positivity has doubled and in the last month we’re seeing much more of the virus in wastewater testing, especially in the South.
If it’s spreading in your community, you can take action right now:
- Step up handwashing. Using soap and water, it’s the simplest but also the best defense against norovirus. Assign a handwashing captain, ring a bell every 30 minutes, give out gold stars - whatever works!
- Train your team on when it’s safe to return to work. Norovirus is incredibly infectious even after symptoms end. The most common issues we see with workplace transmission are people who return to work too soon, when they’re feeling better but are still shedding tons of viral particles. Make sure your team knows to stay home for a FULL 48 HOURS after symptoms end, even if they weren’t scheduled to work on the day they were sick.
- Keep employees out if their household members have noro. The chances of getting norovirus if someone else in their household has it are so high, it’s not worth the risk to your business. Keep them out for 3 days, and we’ll bet money that they’ll tell you they got sick during that time.
- Educate your team! Use our free noro poster, attached below in English and Spanish, to share more info on this nasty stomach bug. A little reminder goes a long way.
Sources: Force of Infection, ABC, ZHH
Best Read:
Bird flu is ravaging marine mammal populations. This article about the race to save an endangered species of seal in Hawaii was an interesting look at how vaccines are developed and tested for use in the wild.