By Sgt. Stephanie L. Carl
For every hazard to the safety of coalition personnel, there are more than enough ways to take the hazard out of play.
Some of the dangers are very serious, life- and limb-threatening afflictions, and others are as simple as the common cold and influenza that flare up as temperatures plummet.
Both the cold and flu are easily prevented with responsible actions by individuals, and proper supervision by leadership.
"The biggest problems we see at sick call right now are the common cold and flu," said Sgt. Robert W. Bruce, 528th Engineer Battalion medical noncommissioned officer in charge. "I see about 12 or 13 soldiers a day at sick call for one of these two things."
With the varying and extreme conditions troops are exposed to in Afghanistan, service members are even more susceptible to these two maladies. But it doesn't take much to protect against them.
The first, most basic protection available, and required, is the flu shot.
"People will ask me why they need to get a flu shot every year," said Bruce. "The answer is that there is a different strain of the flu every year."
Another preventive measure is proper protection against the elements.
"I always see people out running early in the morning with nothing covering their face," said Bruce.
Covering the nose and mouth, and wearing long pants, are two easy ways to filter bacteria from the dust in the air and stay warm.
Service members in the field and on convoys are especially at risk against the elements. The best thing they can do is bundle up against the cold.
"I see the convoys rolling out every day, and the gunners in the turrets are always dressed properly," said Bruce. "It shows. I haven't treated a single gunner yet for a cold or flu."
Leaders play a big role in ensuring their soldiers protect themselves against illness.
"Leaders need to ensure their soldiers are dressing properly," said Bruce. "At the same time, they need to realize that every individual has different tolerance levels."
While one service member may be comfortable in a T-shirt, another Soldier may require multiple layers in the same conditions.
Another basic precaution against common illnesses is proper personal hygiene. Hand washing and covering sneezes are two of the main ways to prevent the spread of bacteria from person to person.
For soldiers in the field, hand-wash stations may not always be available. But there are alternatives.
"Hand sanitizer works great," said Staff Sgt. Marvin Kelley, Headquarters and Headquarters Company, Combined Task Force Bronco, battle non-commissioned officer. "Even if you can't wash your hands, you can sanitize them. Soldiers are constantly touching the same equipment and vehicles. That's one of the fastest ways germs are spread."
Wearing clean uniforms also prevents against colds and flus.
"Leaders should make sure they are allowing their soldiers to do things like change their socks and T-shirts in the field," said Kelley. "People don't realize how much bacteria is in the sand out here, not to mention bugs that carry their own bacteria and diseases."
Proper hydration is also a main defense against getting sick.
"People tend to forget about drinking water during the winter months," said Bruce. "But this is one of the best ways to prevent illness, and it's about the only thing that will help speed up the healing process if you do get sick."
The only other thing that cures the flu or a cold is time, he said. But medics can provide medications to ease the symptoms.
The symptoms between the two are very similar, with one exception -- body aches.
"If you have a flu, your whole body will hurt," said Bruce.
A cold is characterized by runny nose, coughing, sore throat, irritability, ear aches and sensitive eyes. There are medications available to treat each of these symptoms.
"But medications can take up to 72 hours to start working," said Bruce.
Additionally, the medics can only provide these medications if a service member lets them know there is a problem.
"Soldiers need to come to sick call as soon as they have a problem," he said.
Supervisors should also pay close attention to their troops.
"Squad leaders know their people," said Bruce. "They know when someone's not feeling well, and they need to make sure they come to sick call."
If a service member doesn't get treated, the mission may be adversely affected.
"A sick soldier isn't as alert as they normally would be," said Kelley. "I'm not effective if I don't have my whole team, and a soldier doesn't do me any good if he's not 100 percent.
"I always tell my soldiers, "People always stress weapons maintenance, but there's also personal maintenance, and that comes first." "
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| Date Taken: | 01.07.2005 |
| Date Posted: | 01.07.2005 09:24 |
| Story ID: | 804 |
| Location: | AF |
| Web Views: | 99 |
| Downloads: | 90 |
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