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Respiratory Illnesses
Resources for Cold & Flu Season
During the fall and winter seasons, when we are all spending more time indoors, there are simple steps we can take to protect ourselves and our loved ones from seasonal respiratory illnesses. Respiratory viruses include COVID-19, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), influenza (flu), and other common cold viruses (rhinoviruses, coronaviruses, and other viruses). Use the links and guidance below to stay informed and protect your health.
Take Steps to Prevent Respiratory Illness
Use the information below to protect your health and the health of loved ones when respiratory virus levels are high in our community. Find current immunization recommendations and community locations here.
Core Prevention Strategies
Core prevention strategies are essential practices recommended for everyone, especially when respiratory viruses are spreading in our community. Click HERE to view current respiratory illness activity. Take the following simple steps to protect you and your loved ones:
- Stay up to date with recommended immunizations. Talk to your trusted healthcare provider if you have questions about how best to protect your health.
- Practice good hygiene like washing your hands regularly for 20 seconds, using hand sanitizer on the go, and cleaning commonly touched surfaces.
- Keep your immune system strong by eating a balanced diet, avoiding alcohol and smoking, staying active, and getting enough sleep. Find other ways to boost your immune system from Harvard Health.
- Take steps for cleaner air as possible in places where people live and work.
Additional Prevention Strategies
Additional prevention strategies are extra measures you can choose that can further reduce your risk of respiratory illness. They can provide an extra layer of protection and can be especially important in certain settings.- Get tested and start treatment early if prescribed by your provider.
- Learn about how wearing masks can reduce spread.
- For healthcare facilities, find specific COVID-19 prevention guidance here.
Key Times for Prevention
All of the prevention strategies described in this guidance can be helpful to reduce risk. They are especially helpful when:
- Respiratory viruses are causing a lot of illness in our community. One thing to remember, though, is that vaccines take time to work. It's best to get vaccinated before viruses start spreading in your community.
- You or the people around you were recently exposed to a respiratory virus, are sick, or are recovering.
- You or the people around you have risk factors for severe illness.
Guidance for COVID-19, Flu, & RSV
COVID-19 is here to stay, but we can take steps to protect ourselves, our families, and our community members. Tools such as at-home testing, prevention measures, immunizations, and effective treatments help to keep our communities safe and healthy.
Many people with COVID-19 have mild illnesses, but some people can become severely ill. Symptoms may include headache, fatigue, muscle aches, runny nose, fever, loss of sense of taste and smell, and fatigue. Convenient at-home tests can help determine if you have COVID-19.
Vaccination against COVID-19 is especially important for individuals at greater risk of severe disease, including older adults and people with weakened immune systems. Vaccination decreases disease severity and helps prevent Long COVID, which can last for an extended duration following infection. For the most recent immunization recommendations, visit the Immunizations webpage.
Free COVID-19 Home Test Kits
If you need a home test kit immediately, ICPH supplies the following locations with free test kits available to the public:
Camano Island
| Coupeville
| Oak Harbor
|
South Whidbey
| ||
Influenza (flu) is a contagious respiratory illness caused by viruses that infect the nose, throat, and lungs. Flu vaccines decrease the severity of flu-related illness, reducing the need for medical care and hospitalization. Symptoms of the flu include sudden onset of a high fever, cough, sore throat, runny nose, headache, nausea, and fatigue.
- For the most recent immunization recommendations, visit the Immunizations webpage. A yearly flu vaccine is recommended for everyone aged 6 months and older. Some children may require two doses. Getting a yearly flu vaccination is the best way to prevent flu and its potentially serious complications. It's best to get your family immunized by October.
- For those who are at higher risk of developing severe disease, vaccination is especially important. These groups include:
- Older adults
- Adults with certain chronic health conditions, such as asthma, heart disease, diabetes, and chronic kidney disease
- Pregnant people
- Children younger than 5 years, and especially those younger than 2 years old
Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a common respiratory virus that typically causes mild cold-like illness. Most people recover in a week or two, but infection can be serious for infants and older adults. For the most recent immunization recommendations, visit the Immunizations webpage.
- Infants and young children: Monoclonal antibody treatments are CDC-approved and are available to protect infants and young children from severe RSV. Parents can discuss this treatment option with their pediatrician.
- Older Adults: Older adults are at a higher risk of developing severe RSV, as well as serious illnesses and conditions (such as pneumonia, asthma, and heart failure) as a result of getting RSV. According to the CDC, RSV leads to an estimated 100,000 to 150,000 hospitalizations among seniors each year.
- RSV and Pregnancy: While pregnant people are not at high risk of developing severe illness from RSV, getting vaccinated between 32 and 36 weeks of pregnancy passes on protection to your baby for their first six months of life, when they are at highest risk of RSV.
Respiratory viruses may cause both upper respiratory tract symptoms (the vocal chords and above) and lower respiratory tract symptoms (below the vocal chords). Some viruses also affect the nose, throat and lungs, and can lead to serious lung infections, such as pneumonia.
Examples of respiratory virus symptoms:
- Fever
- Chills
- Fatigue
- Cough
- Runny or stuffy nose
- Decrease in appetite
- Sore Throat
- Vomiting
- New loss of taste or smell
- Headache, muscle or body aches
- Diarrhea
- Weakness
If you have an emergency warning sign (like trouble breathing ), seek emergency medical care immediately.
How to Manage Cold & Flu Symptoms
If you have mild symptoms and are not at high risk of severe illness, care for yourself or family members at home, take the following steps:
- Get plenty of rest
- Stay hydrated
- Avoid added sugars and eat a balanced diet, adding in soups and try warm herbal teas
- Use over-the-counter medications to ease symptoms, such as fever and headache
We recommend that when people get sick with a respiratory virus (COVID-19, flu, RSV) that they stay home and away from others. You can go back to your normal activities when, for at least 24 hours:
- Your symptoms are getting better overall, and
- You have not had a fever (and are not using fever reducing medication).
When you go back to your normal activities, take added precaution over the next 5 days, such as wearing a mask, covering coughs and sneezes, and regularly washing your hands for 20 seconds.
Contact your healthcare provider or a nurse hotline through your insurance plan if you or a family member are concerned about symptoms or are at high risk for severe illness.
Seek immediate medical attention right away by calling 911 or visiting the nearest Emergency Room if you or a household member are experiencing severe symptoms. The following list is not all-inclusive. Please consult your medical provider for any other symptoms that are severe or concerning.
Emergency Symptoms
In infants and children:
- Fast breathing or trouble breathing
- Bluish lips or face
- Ribs pulling in with each breath
- Chest pain
- Severe muscle pain (child refuses to walk)
- Dehydration (no urine for 8 hours, dry mouth, no tears when crying)
- Not alert or interacting when awake
- Seizures
- Fever above 104 degrees Fahrenheit that is not controlled by fever-reducing medicine
- In children younger than 12 weeks, any fever
In adults:
- Difficulty breathing or shortness of breath
- Persistent pain or pressure in the chest or abdomen
- Persistent dizziness, confusion, inability to arouse
- Seizures
- Not urinating
- Severe muscle pain
- Severe weakness or unsteadiness
- Worsening of chronic medical conditions
Learn More
- RSV: When It's More Than Just a Cold - Learn more about symptoms, treatment, and signs of severe illness in infants and children.
- Caring for a Sick Family Member - CDC guidelines for providing at-home care for a family member with the flu.
- Long COVID Guidance - Long COVID can include a range of ongoing health problems that can last for weeks, months, or years.