Tulsa, OK- St. Francis Hospital is reporting a surge in cases of H1N1 at it's Children's Hospital.
Several adults and children have been admitted to the hospital with severe flu complications.
"It's a killer disease," said Mohammed Ameen, who brings a bottle of rubbing alcohol to the park to sanitize his kids hands.
Some might call him overprotective, but health care workers say parents like Ameen may have good reason to be so concerned.
St. Francis doctor Ethan Warlick says in the last three weeks, his emergency room's seen a 50-percent jump in the number of patients coming in with flu symptoms.
"We've been stretched because of legitimately ill emergency room patients," said Warlick. "What we're getting now are a lot of people just afraid that they have the flu."
Warlick says rather than assume you or your child needs to go to the ER, look for these symptoms:
- shortness of breath
- chest pain
- trouble breathing
- persistent vomiting
- seizures/confusion
Ameen says he'll take his kids to the ER if he thinks they're sick.
"You have to. It could be something else, you don't know. You can't diagnose it by yourself."
One mom says she'd opt for the family doctor.
"I think I'd probably call him first," said Sarah Say, who has two daughters. "I'm just not really overly excited about it."
The hospital is advising anyone with children exhibiting the following symptoms to call their doctor immediately:
-The child is younger than 1 year old.
-The person is more ill than you would expect.
-Fever persists more than 3 days.
-Symptoms include lethargy that does not improve after taking Tylenol.
-There is an existing chronic illness or some other risk factor, such as pregnancy.
Of course, the best way to prevent getting the H1N1 virus is to wash your hands or sanitize. Doctors say rather than cough into your hands, cough into your sleeve.
