WASHINGTON, Oct 23, 2009 (UPI via COMTEX) -- In one in five U.S. households,
someone has gone to work or school when they were presumed to be sick with H1N1
flu, a survey indicates.
The Red Cross survey of 1,005 U.S. adults, conducted Oct. 8-11, shows 22 percent
say they know someone who has had the H1N1 flu. The vast majority of flu-like
illness currently are H1N1 flu.
"People who have the flu should stay home from work or school to help prevent
passing the illness on to someone else," Sharon Stanley, chief nurse of the
American Red Cross, said in a statement.
"Each of us has the responsibility to be a good neighbor. To help keep others
from becoming sick, do your part by washing your hands, sneezing into your arm,
using hand sanitizer and staying home when ill."
Seventy percent of Americans are confident that they could take time off from
work to care for someone with the flu, but only 20 percent have actually talked
to a supervisor about what happens if they need to take time off.
Thirty-five percent of women have gotten their seasonal flu shots, while 26
percent of men have. Women say they are more concerned than men about the safety
of the H1N1 vaccine, with 60 percent expressing concern, compared with 44
percent of men.
The telephone survey, conducted by Caravan Opinion Research Corp. has a margin
of error of 3.1 percentage points.
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Copyright 2009 by United Press International