[D] “Living the Healthy Life” tells how to keep fit. “What to Eat and Why” discusses the question of diet. “That Mean Cold” tells more in detail about the care of colds. Copies of all these booklets will be sent to anyone on request.
Overcrowding greatly increases the chance of spreading pneumonia from person to person. When colds and other respiratory diseases are prevalent, public gatherings should be avoided as much as possible. Rules of health departments forbidding spitting should be strictly obeyed by all. Special precautions should be taken against unnecessary contact with pneumonia patients and those recently recovered from the disease, who still may be carriers of the germ. This precaution is especially important for persons who are run down, or have some existing respiratory disease.
In the care of patients with pneumonia, the following precautions for the protection of others must be observed:
If the patient is treated at home, only those responsible for his care should be permitted in the sick-room.
The patient’s nasal discharges and sputum should be collected in pieces of cloth or soft paper and burned promptly. Droplet infection may be avoided by placing a piece of cloth or soft paper over the patient’s mouth when he coughs or sneezes, and this cloth or paper should be burned. Unnecessary contamination of bedding or clothing should be prevented.
The patient’s eating utensils, bedding, and linen should be scalded and washed in soap and hot water.
Dry sweeping or dusting of the sick-room should not be permitted; cleaning can be done safely only with a damp cloth.
After each time that care is given to the patient, the attendant should scrub her hands thoroughly.