Orangeburg, NY (PRWEB) June 17, 2009

In response to the growing numbers of confirmed cases of H1N1 influenza A virus infection across the globe, the World Health Organization (WHO) recently declared a pandemic, the first global epidemic in 41 years. Professional Disposables International, Inc. (PDI), (http://www.pdipdi.com) a leader in infection prevention in healthcare settings, issued a reminder about the importance of hand hygiene as an effective way to stem the spread of disease.

“We are closely monitoring the latest updates from both the CDC, as well as the World Health Organization, to ensure the public is provided with the most up-to-date information available,” said Zachary T. Julius, CEO, PDI. “According to the CDC, hand hygiene remains the first step in infection prevention and it is a step each one of us can take.” H1N1 flu is highly contagious and can easily be transmitted before a person shows symptoms.

Infection Prevention Recommendations

Proper hand hygiene is the single most important means for preventing the spread of infection in schools, offices and healthcare facilities. Frequently wash hands with soap and water for 15-20 seconds. When soap and water are not available, use alcohol-based disposable hand wipes or gel sanitizers.

In healthcare settings, disinfecting hard surfaces is also critical to preventing the spread of infection between patients and healthcare workers. Avoid touching community surfaces where the virus can live for up to 2-8 hours outside the body.

Additional Resources Available for Healthcare Facilities

PDI maintains a complete portfolio of infection prevention solutions to meet the ever evolving clinical needs of the healthcare industry. The Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) most recent guidance for the use of antimicrobial products registered for use against influenza A viruses on hard surfaces states that any EPA accepted product with an efficacy claim against influenza A virus is also effective against H1N1 influenza virus. All three PDI Sani-Cloth® disinfecting products have claims against influenza A virus. (Please see information below regarding new EPA guidelines.)

In addition to providing efficacious disinfectants and hand hygiene products, PDI has released new protocols for both environmental surface disinfection and hand hygiene to reflect the latest guidance from the CDC and WHO.

“PDI is ready to assist our customers in responding to this growing public health threat by providing infection prevention resources, such as product usage templates updated with the latest guidance from the CDC and WHO, as well as consultations with one of our infection preventionists”, said J. Hudson Garrett Jr., Ph.D., Director of Clinical Affairs.

For additional specific guidance on infection prevention strategies specific to H1N1 influenza, please visit the CDC’s dedicated resource page at http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/ or the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology resource page at http://www.apic.org.

For more than 30 years, PDI has pioneered the development, testing, manufacturing and marketing of pre-moistened wipes as the optimum delivery system for skin antisepsis, hand hygiene, patient and surface care. With trusted brands including Sani-Cloth®, Sani-Hands® ALC, Sani-Hands® for Kids, Hygea® and Chlorascrub™, PDI serves the healthcare market through hospitals, physician and dental offices, emergency medical services, long-term care, schools and a variety of other healthcare facilities. Professional Disposables International, Inc. is headquartered in Orangeburg, New York. For more information, visit http://www.pdipdi.com.

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©Copyright 1997-

, Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.
Vocus, PRWeb, and Publicity Wire are trademarks or registered trademarks of Vocus, Inc. or Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.

Cambridge, MA (PRWEB) June 23, 2009

Bio Economic Research Associates, or bio-era (http://www.bio-era.net), a leading independent research and advisory firm providing analysis on the future of the global bio economy, today announced the launch of a multi-client service to track the potential impacts of H1N1 pandemic influenza for service participants, markets and industries.

The service will provide independent, expert research and analysis on the on-going crisis, and the possible financial and business implications of the H1N1 influenza pandemic – both generally, and for the specific interests and markets of participating clients.

The service will provide:

Independent, expert analysis integrating the latest developments on the evolution of the disese event, public, media, and government perceptions of the degree of threat posed by the disease, and the reactions and responses – and the associated economic and business impacts
Scenarios for the evolution of pandemic influenza and the key implications for participating businesses, market participants, and investors.
Regular teleconferences with bio-era experts and participants to present and discuss the latest developments and bio-era analysis.
Occasional roundtables to share best practices
Under the leadership and direction of bio-era President, Stephen Aldrich, the service will deliver a steady stream of bio-era research and analysis from a distinguished expert faculty, as well as highly plausible scenarios for the evolution of the novel H1N1 pandemic, how government and public health agencies and institutions are responding, the implications for service participants – and how they can adapt.

Participants are expected to include companies with significant market exposure to trade and economic disruptions, investors, public health officials, researchers and analysts engaged in business planning, risk management, market analysis, and trading.

Novel H1N1 and the Risks of a Global Pandemic:

Now that the World Health Organization has declared the outbreak of novel variant H1N1 “swine” influenza to be a pandemic, the issue is “so what?” How will the spread of this pandemic influenza affect human societies and economies — even specific markets, industries, and companies?

We know from past experience with SARS and H5N1, and from many studies carried out over the past few years (see attached bio-era Senate Testimony), that pandemic influenza can have enormous consequences for global trade and travel, with extremely large economic impacts. Precisely because this is so, a systematic approach to developing an “early warning” system with respect to the evolution of the disease event – its current and future trajectory, the local and global implications, and the reactions these provoke – can provide enormous benefits and opportunities to those prepared to act.

Learning What to Watch

This service is designed to help stakeholders address the following questions:

What indicators should the business community be watching with respect to the unfolding H1N1 pandemic?
What specific actions (travel advisories, quarantines, travel restrictions, etc.) are governments and public health authorities initiating, and what should we expect going forward?
How are local outbreaks of novel H1N1 changing perceptions and the degree of fear generally? How are perceptions and fears driving the response to the disease?
How and when will fears and the responses they provoke impact regional and global economies and the businesses operating within and/or interconnected with these regions?
How should businesses and market participants adapt?
By delivering a scenarios framework and logic to bound plausible outcomes, and providing continuous, expert evaluation of new developments in a manner which directly relates back to the scenarios framework – referencing key signposts, and signaling important forks in the road — the service aims to improve commercial and business decision-making ahead of time – particularly in an environment likely to see a heightening of conflicting information, rumor, and fear.

To enroll in the service, or for more information, please visit http://www.bio-era.net or contact Stephen Aldrich or Grant Hastings at 617 876-2400.

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Attachments

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Sausalito, CA (PRWEB) May 4, 2009

Reed Seminars has released an Instant Impact Webinar on Putting Preparations in Place in Case the Swine Flu (H1N1 Flu) Impacts Your Employees (http://reedseminars.com/details.asp?id=302). The 60-minute webinar was conducted by J. Mark Waxman and Mark Neuberger of Foley & Lardner LLP on May 1st and is now available for download. The webinar contains critical information for CEOs and HR Managers on important topics such as preventative measures, preparing a “what-if” plan regarding business continuity, legal issues regarding what you can and cannot do, and creating a response team in case the need arrives.

According to Jonathan Reed Aspatore, CEO of Reed Seminars, “This is an unfortunate topic affecting the world right now. CEOs, HR Managers and executives need to be prepared in case someone at their company is infected. We hope this resource will help them do this in a more proactive manner, instead of being forced to make rush decisions if and when there is an outbreak amongst their workforce.”

The webinar features a PowerPoint with audio narration and also includes a separate blank PowerPoint executives can use to create their own response plan. For additional information on this webinar or Reed Seminars, please visit http://reedseminars.com/details.asp?id=302.

About Reed Seminars:
 Reed Seminars publishes over 500 seminars a year on breaking news, trends and strategies that executives need instant thought leadership on so they are prepared to act accordingly. Previous seminars have been led by hundreds of C-Level executives and partners from 60% of the largest 200 law firms. Seminars can be downloaded to any computer, iPod, Blackberry or mobile media device or sent on CD.

Contact:
Chris Beaver, Marketing Manager, Reed Seminars
415-331-1122 http://www.reedseminars.com/

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©Copyright 1997-

, Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.
Vocus, PRWeb, and Publicity Wire are trademarks or registered trademarks of Vocus, Inc. or Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.

Boston, MA (PRWEB) April 7, 2008

Replikins, Ltd. has found that the Replikin Count™ of the H1N1 strain of influenza virus has recently increased to 7.6 (plus/minus 1.4), its highest level since the 1918 H1N1 pandemic (p value less than 0.001). A rising Replikin Count of a particular influenza strain, indicating rapid replication of the virus, is an early warning which has been followed consistently by an outbreak of the specific strain. The current increase appears to be specific to H1N1; there was a concurrent 80% decline in the Replikin Count of H3N2, for instance.

The current H1N1 appears to be rapidly replicating simultaneously in the U.S. and Austria. It may succeed H5N1 as the leading candidate for the next expected overdue pandemic. However, the same virus replikin structures detected by FluForecast® software in all three previous pandemics, namely 1918 H1N1, 1957 H2N2, and 1968 H3N2, as well as in H5N1, have not yet been detected in the currently evolving H1N1.

There is evidence that many factors, including virus structure, host receptivity, and the environment, together with infectivity and rapid replication, need to converge for a pandemic to occur. For H5N1, the high human mortality rate, which peaked at over 80% in 2006-07 in Indonesia, as well as current low infectivity, both appear to limit H5N1′s ability to produce a pandemic. Furthermore, the H5N1 rapid replication cycle which began in 1996 now appears to be over. The H5N1 virus produced less than 300 World Health Organization confirmed deaths over the past 10 years.

On the other hand, H1N1, with an estimated human mortality rate of only 2.5 to 10%, but with much higher infectivity, produced an estimated 50 million deaths in the 1918 pandemic. A number of countermeasures exist today which did not exist in 1918, however. Among these is Replikins’ ability to manufacture synthetic vaccines based on current sequences, with a seven day production turnaround.

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©Copyright 1997-

, Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.
Vocus, PRWeb, and Publicity Wire are trademarks or registered trademarks of Vocus, Inc. or Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.

Find More Influenza Press Releases

Medical Billing and Practice Management Consulting

Washington, DC (Vocus) October 22, 2009

With Healthcare Reform just around the corner and all the new regulations already placed on physicians in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), Capture Billing & Consulting, Inc., a medical billing and practice management company, is helping doctors and medical billers wade thorough and sort out information with its new Medical Billing Minute videos. The one minute long videos will cover a multitude of topics relevant for today’s physicians to help them through the maze of coding, billing and compliance regulations. The first video walks physicians through how to properly bill for the H1N1 Swine Flu Vaccine.

“Physicians, managers and medical billers don’t have a lot of time but need healthcare information,” says Manny Oliverez, Director of Operations of Capture Billing. “We are hoping that via Twitter, Facebook and blogging we can reach healthcare professionals and get them the information they need via a short one to two minute video. That really has not been done before.”

Capture will produce videos to help doctors code and document properly and tell them of governmental regulations that will affect their practice. Some episodes will give tips to medical billers on how to deal with insurance companies that stall or deny coverage for patients and how to overcome the obstacles they put up. The company plans to produce ove 60 Medical Billing Minute videos.

Healthcare professionals can subscribe to the Medical Billing Minute by going to the Capture Billing website or blog, to YouTube.com or finding Capture on Twitter.

# # #

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, Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.
Vocus, PRWeb, and Publicity Wire are trademarks or registered trademarks of Vocus, Inc. or Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.

Related Swine Flu Press Releases

Jefferson, Wisconsin (PRWEB) September 11, 2009

No longer will Schools and Business have to worry about their H1N1 (Swine Flu) response efforts. There is now a pandemic influenza response plan which details step-by-step the response efforts needed to be taken in the various stages of a pandemic.

With the U.S. Government estimating the possibility of 30,000 to 90,000 deaths and the possibility of 40% of the population becoming infected with the H1N1 (Swine Flu) virus, many schools and business find themselves in a quandary calculating their response efforts. After last April’s outbreak many schools and business realized the need to have a plan in place. Now with the advent of the fall season quickly coming upon us, many schools and business are still not prepared to deal with the possibilities of widespread infection amongst the population and in particular, students and employees.

Integrated Planning Services, L.LC has solved this problem. The plan that they have created provides a step-by-step process that can be followed based upon the severity of the pandemic at any given time. It is immediately ready to put into operation. There are no following links in order to find out what needs to be done and when. The plan is comprehensive with all the latest information provided by public health organizations as well as the World Health Organization and is written in laymen’s terms.

The plans can be found at their website: http://www.pandemicsupport.com. This website also provides plethora of information as well. Without proper planning, schools and business might be left to “improvise”. This will lead to “rushed” decision making at a time when composure is needed. Managers may become frantic as they must decide quickly what response efforts they need to employ. Procedures to mitigate the spread of the virus, along with a host of other issues will be unfortunately dealt with spontaneously rather than strategically. Integrated Planning Services, LLC can provide that peace of mind to know that everything that can be done, is being done.

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©Copyright 1997-

, Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.
Vocus, PRWeb, and Publicity Wire are trademarks or registered trademarks of Vocus, Inc. or Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.

More Swine Flu Press Releases

FluStop vs Control Group

Vancouver, BC (PRWEB) October 15, 2009

FluStop has had a rapid acceleration in sales growth in 2009 due to the high awareness of influenza. Since coming onto the marketplace in 2007, the product has been gathering a following. “I now get calls from across North America and even as far as London England and Hong Kong,” said Greg Gerrie, the company’s CEO. “Even private schools are calling to get large amounts of the product for their staff and students.”

Developed by a leading virologist, FluStop is a natural herbal throat spray solution which, through WHO approved clinical testing, has been shown to inactivate the Hemagglutinin (HA) and Neuraminidase (NA) in types A and B influenza. When the HA and NA, which are the tentacles that stick out of all viruses, are inactivated then the virus is unable to infect the healthy cells and thus replication prevention occurs.

On a recent webinar hosted by life-enthusiast.com, Mr. Gerrie was asked about the recent study which revealed that chances of getting H1N1 are doubled if people had a regular flu shot. “When you bypass our God given natural immune system and inject foreign matter into your body to trick it into developing anti-bodies, you might want to investigate further,” said Gerrie. Gerrie, who is more a marketer than a scientist, has had to learn about the complexities of this subject and gets his information from Dr. Sherri Tenpenny who has done more than 6000 hours of research on the subject of immunization.

Gerrie says he is delighted when he hears how happy people are with the product. Dr. Melissa Carr of Active Life Health Clinic in Vancouver states, “I have found Flu-STOP to be an easy solution and have had great feedback from my patients.” The product benefits are immediate access and easy safe self-administration. FluStop is safe for children and taken just five times per day can eradicate flu symptoms within 8 to 72 hours.

FluStop is sprayed to the back of the throat and nose and makes direct contact with any virus activity and/or bacteria formations. Users are advised not to eat or drink for 30 minutes to allow the formula to work. The current label claim for FluStop is “for the symptomatic relief of colds and flu.”

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Attachments

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Vocus, PRWeb, and Publicity Wire are trademarks or registered trademarks of Vocus, Inc. or Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.

Related Flu Press Releases

Washington, DC (PRWEB) August 23, 2009

With the world facing the ramifications of the spread of the Novel H1N1 A virus (swine flu), politicians, governments and citizens are mobilizing to protect themselves by wearing face masks, canceling trips and staying away from crowds.

The Novel H1N1 A or swine flu virus, like all flu viruses, is commonly spread by the inhalation of respiratory droplets ranging from 1 micron in size and larger. Donning face masks is the most obvious form of protection from transmission of viruses, and face mask sales are going through the roof. But face masks are not sealed, and air that gets around the side of the mask can be inhaled.

An additional defense was revealed at the International Swine Flu Conference in Washington DC on Aug 19th against inhaled viruses and is already available. First Defense Nasal Screens™ are a nasal passage cover made of 100% breathable non-latex, skin-safe material designed to help protect against the inhalation of airborne particles into nasal passages.

First Defense Nasal Screens™ are a sealable nose filter that is simple to apply, safe and discrete. Since the filter is sealed around your nasal opening, no unfiltered air can be inhaled as long as you breathe thorough your nose. The wearer can still exhale and speak normally through the mouth, as long as all air is inhaled through the nose.

Wearing these nasal covers over the nasal openings will reduce respiratory exposure to viral droplets, germs, influenza, colds, bacteria, dust, pollen, pollutants, contaminants, secondhand smoke and inhaled carcinogens. With efficiencies of over 90% on micron sizes as low as 1 and even lower these filters add another option in this fight for cleaner, healthier air.

The CDC recommends a combined approach to help decrease the likelihood of transmission of the current Novel H1N1 A (swine flu) virus, including frequent hand washing, covering coughs, and having ill persons stay home (except to seek medical care) and minimize contact with others.

This flu is not transmitted by food, therefore you can not get it from eating pork or pork products. The symptoms of swine flu in humans are similar to typical flu symptoms including fever, lethargy, lack of appetite, and coughing. Some patients also report runny nose, sore throat, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea.

From The Web Site:

” First Defense Nasal Screens™, the newest breakthrough in personal air filtration. Our mission is to help alleviate respiratory suffering by comfortably filtering nasally-inhaled air and removing airborne germs, allergens and/or noxious particles. Through our product, we hope to educate people about the harms of pollutants and contaminants while working to rid the world of these inhaled poisons.

First Defense Nasal Screens™ are manufactured right here in the United States. We pride ourselves as being both environmentally and economically aware of the world in which we live.”

Board of Directors

Joseph K. Moore

Founder & CEO

Kenneth M. Seabol

Vice President

Advisory Board

Parker Small, M.D.

University of Florida

Dr. Small has spent the past 40 years with University of Florida working on Influenza and Bio infectious diseases.

Dr. Shih-Wen Huang, M.D.

University of Florida

Dr. Huang currently serves the University of Florida as Chief of Pediatric and Adult Allergy Service, Pulmonary Division, Department of Pediatrics UF/Shands Hospital, Gainesville, Florida.

Dr. JOHN MICHAEL NASSIF, MD, FACS

ABMS: American Academy of Ophthalmology, 1989. No Expiration

FLEX Diplomat. 1984

Contact Comp Info:

Joseph K. Moore, CEO

First Defense Nasal Screen Corp

727-389-3292 or 877 my air 09

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©Copyright 1997-

, Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.
Vocus, PRWeb, and Publicity Wire are trademarks or registered trademarks of Vocus, Inc. or Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.

Related Swine Flu Press Releases

Free Flu Shot with any $ 49 purchase.

Plano, TX (Vocus) September 12, 2009

Starting Monday, September 14th, the Plano location of Any Lab Test Now® will be launching a flu shot promotion in hopes of creating awareness as well as providing preventable healthcare to North Dallas residents. Anyone purchasing a $ 49 test or more will be offered a free flu shot at no additional charge. You may also visit Any Lab Test Now® in Plano and purchase only a flu shot for $ 20.

There are many important medical lab tests you can purchase for only $ 49 to qualify for the free flu shot. Some include an anonymous HIV test, PSA test, Drug Test or a Complete Blood Count(CBC).

When asked about reasons behind this promotion, North Dallas Any Lab Test Now® franchise owner Greg Johnson replied, “We are afraid too many North Dallas residents will get wrapped up in the swine flu (H1N1) media frenzy and not get the regular flu vaccine.” Any Lab Test Now® in Plano will be actively visiting local churches, businesses and organizations to raise public awareness of their flu shot promotion.

The H1N1 swine flu has taken the media industry by storm. News organizations report every death and this leads to more public concern and attention. H1N1 was among the top searched terms in Google this last month. Twitter and blogs are overflowing with facts and opinions. Greg elaborates, “This media attention is analogous to a shark feeding frenzy that builds to a precipice. Everyone is frantically waiting to see if H1N1 is over publicized or actually something to fear.” There is currently no H1N1 flu vaccine available to the general public. However, Any Lab Test Now® plans to offer the H1N1 vaccine as soon as it becomes available.

Any Lab Test Now® is a direct access medical lab testing facility. Any Lab Test Now® Plano is located on West Park Blvd near the corner of Preston. There is an Any Lab Test Now® McKinney scheduled to open October 15th ,and is located on West Eldorado Pkwy near Lake Forest Dr. Apart from supplying flu shots, they offer hundreds of lab tests from anonymous STD testing to affordable paternity testing to North Dallas residents. There are over 65 Any Lab Test Now® locations nationwide. Their national footprint allows them to provide affordable medical lab testing straight to customers.

Businesses, churches and organizations wanting to purchase flu shots for the 2009 flu season should contact Any Lab Test Now® in Plano at (972) 596-6181.

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©Copyright 1997-

, Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.
Vocus, PRWeb, and Publicity Wire are trademarks or registered trademarks of Vocus, Inc. or Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.

More Swine Flu Press Releases

Waterloo, ON (PRWEB) August 28, 2009

Stortz & Associates Inc announces the fall introduction of GIANTmicrobes(R) Swine Flu (H1N1).

Introduced at the Canadian Gift and Tableware Association Trade Show in early August, this pale pink novelty doll pokes fun at the porcine ancestry of the virus. But the shape of the doll resembles the actual microbe, and the information tag is designed to educate the public about the disease in a humorous and memorable way.

Linda Stortz, V.P. Sales stated that “H1N1 is of concern for every Canadian and our newest GIANTmicrobes(R) can help educate in a fun yet still scientific way about some of the concerns surrounding H1N1, including typical transmission methods and ways to prevent the spread.”

Linda Stortz went on to say “GIANTmicrobes(R) have been educating consumers for over 5 years with nearly 100 varieties available including Common Cold, Flu, Salmonella, MRSA, E.Coli and Herpes.”

The dolls are available throughout Canada, and are sold by independent toy stores through the NETS (Neighbourhood Toy Stores) organization, specialty toy stores, drug stores, comic book retailers, science centers and university and college book stores.

Linda Stortz, V.P. Sales for Stortz & Associates Inc. of Waterloo, ON says “GIANTmicrobes(R) appeal to the uniquely Canadian sense of humour.”

Global National Television created a news segment featuring GIANTmicrobes(R) on April 4, 2008 to highlight these informative and humorous toys and noted in their news story the use of GIANTmicrobes(R) by health care professionals to educate teens on sexually transmitted diseases.

GIANTmicrobes(R) is the invention of Drew Oliver — former editor of Harvard Lampoon Magazine. http://www.giantmicrobes.com

They have been available in Canada since August 2004 exclusively through Stortz & Associates Inc. founded by Linda Stortz and her husband Gary Stortz in March of 2004.

Stortz & Associates Inc. is an importer and distributor of Toys and Games for the Canadian market located in Waterloo, ON. Information can be found at http://www.stortz.ca. Linda Stortz has over 26 years of experience in retail and the toy industry in Canada.

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©Copyright 1997-

, Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.
Vocus, PRWeb, and Publicity Wire are trademarks or registered trademarks of Vocus, Inc. or Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.