You Can Be A Swine Flu Guru!

The swine flu virus hasn't hit Blanco County yet, but it's swirling all around us. The Texas Department of State Health Services has raised the state's flu status to the second-highest level, with the big surge in cases expected to hit any day.

When it does hit here, the county coalition of churches and social service agencies wants to be ready to answer people's questions quickly -- how do I avoid it, have I got it already, what do I do about it, and more.

The coalition is ready to open a swine flu information hotline where anyone in Blanco County can call for answers, but they need more volunteers to put in a few hours at a time to provide those answers.

A volunteer doesn't have to be a medical professional (no one will give medical advice), nor does the volunteer need to have a deep knowledge of swine flu. The answers will be in a loose-leaf notebook; all the volunteer has to do is look 'em up. There is a bit of a skill to doing that, of course.

If you're willing to help answer the phone, the coalition will teach you what to say and how to find the answers in a hurry. If you can read and talk, and are willing to help your neighbors, you can do it.

The short training session will be at 10 am Saturday, Sept 19, in Fellowship Hall of the First United Methodist Church in Johnson City. It's free, and you're guaranteed to learn something about flu you don't already know.

You never know -- you may be the one who needs to know how to get a fever down fast, or what you should never give a sick child, or the warning signs the flu is going into something worse.

For more information, call George Barnette at 713-252-2288.